"He has to suffer a little so that he gets better": Tennis fans should temper Nadal expectations in comeback says Boris Becker

Boris Becker discussed Rafael Nadal's comeback and advised fans not to have high expectations for his return. According to Holger Rune's coach, Nadal is likely targeting clay court tournaments, and in Melbourne, he will arrive without too many expectations.

The Spanish player last competed in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open (defeat against Mackenzie McDonald) and will make his return at the ATP 250 Brisbane International, where he will share the main draw with players like Rune, Grigor Dimitrov, and Ben Shelton. This will be his only preparation tournament for the first Grand Slam of the year.

Former world No. 1 Boris Becker does not anticipate that Nadal's return to the courts will result in significant winning streaks, at least initially. He urged fans to temper their expectations, stating that the 22-times Grand Slam champion will probably not showcase his best form at the Aussie Open: “I don’t think his expectations for Melbourne are sky-high right now: if he wins a few matches there, good for him,” he said.

Becker pointed out that Nadal needs to accumulate matches to reach his peak physical and competitive condition for the clay-court tournaments in April, particularly the French Open: “He will then concentrate on the clay-court tournaments early on. He’ll definitely play Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid and maybe even Rome to be 100 per cent fit again in Paris."

For the German coach, Nadal's primary focus should be on clay court events, and he believes Nadal will use the significant tournaments leading up to the French Open to gain valuable match fitness and practice: “His goal has to be Roland-Garros, and then the Olympics, both of which will be played in Paris on clay, but he has to play first: he will only gain match fitness and match practice by playing in matches,” he said. “So he has to suffer a little so that he gets better in March, April, until he can play his best game in May,” Becker added.