By
FOLKERT HESSE
Rafa finished his preparation for the US-hard-court season 2010 today in Manacor, Mallorca. Tomorrow morning he will head to Toronto, Canada for the first of two ATP-1000 tournaments he will be playing before the US-Open.
I have seen most of his practice sessions with different sparring partners and even though he has not trained for a very long time since his Wimbledon victory, he looks fit and ready to go for the only missing Grand Slam in his record books.
And maybe the reduced amount of intense training will make the difference this year and he will be healthy and on top of his game when the second week of the Open starts.
At one practice session I thought I have noticed a little limping when he was forced to go hard into the corners. But the next days he was ok again and I did not detect any kind of pain or injury that would hold him back. His last practice session today, where he trained with his good friend and doubles partner, Marc Lopez, he did not play too well, but neither he, nor his coach Toni Nadal, seemed to be concerned about it at all. Not even when Marc Lopez (ATP 730 !) won the only set they played today…
In all his training sessions he practiced a lot of serve and volley and net approaches, which shows that he is willing to make some changes in his game to get the only missing Grand Slam title in his, already outstanding, career. And with the French Open and Wimbledon in his bag, he carries a lot of confidence on his shoulders to try new things.
In general all of his practice sessions have been in a very good atmosphere and he seems relaxed and in a good mood. Even when the many fans or some local TV stations disturbed his training sessions he took it easy and did not get upset.
So, I think he is the clear favorite for the US-Open title this year and the New York crown would put him on the same page with players like Agassi, Borg, Lendl, McEnroe and Connors.
And if his knees will stay healthy for another 3 or 4 more years, he might catch up to players like Sampras, Laver and Federer, or even pass by them.
Vamos Rafa!
Rafael Nadal and his uncle and coach Toni during practice in manacor, Mallorca
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