Rafael Nadal has begun his preparations for the Australian Open. Despite withdrawing from the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, the first ATP World Tour tournament of 2018, to recover from an exhausting 2017, the No. 1 player in the ATP Rankings plans to storm into this year's Australian Open with the same ambition and enthusiasm he showed in his run to the final last year. By Nadal's side will be fellow Spaniard and former World No. 1 Carlos Moya, who made a successful addition to Nadal's team for the 2017 season. Being rested going into the first major tournament of the year is essential if Nadal is to repeat the success he achieved in 2017, according to Moya. In this...
In this edition of ATPWorldTour.com's Best of 2017 series, Rafael Nadal reflects on the honour of finishing as the year-end No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Ranking following an on-court trophy ceremony at the 2017 Nitto ATP Finals.
The 2016 battle for No. 1 finished in a sprint, with Andy Murray winning 24 consecutive matches and five consecutive titles to edge Novak Djokovic. The 2017 season also featured a two-man race, as Rafael Nadal beat out Roger Federer to finish atop the Emirates ATP Rankings for the fourth time, and, at 31, become the oldest year-end No. 1. But the 2018 battle for the top spot hardly looks as if it will be a mano-a-mano contest. Rather, next year's fight for No. 1 in the Emirates ATP Rankings looks as wide open as any in recent memory. The seven men who could finish on top: 1) No. 1 Rafael Nadal Nadal could very well back his 2017 and...
Rafael Nadal has been forced to withdraw from the first ATP World Tour tournament of 2018, the Brisbane International presented by Suncorp, which starts 31 December. The Spaniard announced on social media that he's still not fit to play after participating but eventually pulling out of the final two tournaments of the 2017 season – the Rolex Paris Masters and the Nitto ATP Finals – because of a right knee injury. “I am sorry to announce I won’t be coming to Brisbane this year. My intention was to play but I am still not ready after last year’s long season and the late start of my preparation,” Nadal said. [ALSO LIKE] The 31-year-old finished No. 1 in the 2017 year-end Emirates...
The ability to quickly adjust to different surfaces and conditions is a necessity on the 64-tournament circuit. Here's a look at some of the best performers in 2017 by surface this year: Clay Courts (minimum 10 matches) 'King of Clay' Rafael Nadal recorded historic 10th titles at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell and at Roland Garros. He also won a fifth Mutua Madrid Open trophy and now has a record 53 red dirt crowns. Dominic Thiem also excelled, compiling a 24-5 (.828) mark on the surface (1-2 record in finals). Player W-L Record Winning % Rafael Nadal 24-1 .960 Dominic Thiem 24-5 .828 Albert Ramos-Vinolas 22-13 .629 Pablo Carreno Busta 20-9 .690 Diego Schwartzman 17-12 .586...
