On paper, the 2017 Wimbledon Championships, which start on Monday, could be Rafael Nadal's best chance in years to win another title at the All England Club. The Spaniard has won 24 of his past 25 matches, including three titles – Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell and the Mutua Madrid Open – en route to his 10th Roland Garros crown during the European clay-court swing. He's been healthy all season long, has posted a 43-6 record so far and appears to be in good health heading into his 12th Wimbledon. “You can imagine playing here in Wimbledon for me has always been very, very special. It was one of the biggest goals that I had when I started to...
Rafael Nadal has been practising at full throttle in the build up to Wimbledon. The Spaniard has set himself a goal of playing his best tennis at Wimbledon, something he hasn't been able to do in the past five years for various reasons, and was to be found on Thursday morning engaged in a high intensity two-hour practice with Alexander Zverev. "In 2014 I made the fourth round and it was my best year since reaching the final in 2011," said Nadal. "Since then I've had many problems with my knees. In 2012 and 2013 it was really bad and then in 2015, my knees were fine, but I felt bad for many other reasons. Last year unfortunately I broke...
Winning begets winning. Winning just one point when returning creates a fascinating dynamic that helps increase the probability of winning a second. Win two points, and your percentages rise again to win the third. It all starts with one, but it snowballs from there. An Infosys ATP Beyond The Numbers analysis of the Top 10 players in the Emirates ATP Rankings as of 12 June uncovers that there is a natural, underlying progression at work when players return serve. The data set is from the 2015 and 2016 seasons, as well as all 2017 tournaments up to and including Roland Garros. The data focus specifically on the three even point scores in a game: Love All 15/15 30/30 1. Love...
By virtue of his stellar performances this season, and particularly over the past two months, Rafael Nadal has thrust himself to the forefront of the sport once again and in strong contention for his fourth year-end No. 1 finish in the Emirates ATP Rankings (2008, 2010, 2013). In winning 24 of his 25 matches on the European clay-court swing, the Spanish superstar has lifted three 'Big Titles' - his 10th Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, his fifth Mutua Madrid Open and his 10th Roland Garros crown. The Open Era leader for most clay-court titles won (53), also picked up his 10th Barcelona OpenBanc Sabadell trophy in April. With 45 'Big Titles' - 15 Grand Slams and 30 ATP World Tour Masters 1000s...
Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from the Aegon Championships at The Queen’s Club after taking the advice of his doctors to rest. Nadal, who won a 10th Roland Garros crown on Sunday after titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid over the past two months, said: “I am very sorry to say that I am not going to be able play Queen’s next week. I am sad to make this decision because I love Queen’s, I won the tournament in 2008 and every time I reached the Wimbledon final it was after playing Queen’s. “I was hoping to take some days off and then be ready, but at 31, and after a long clay court season with all of the emotions...