Last time they met at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal hit THIS shot vs Alexander Zverev, whilst down 2-6 in the first set tie-break, before going on to win the set 🤯 In just a few days, they meet again, with Zverev the firm betting favourite… 👀😬
John McEnroe criticizes French Open's decision to not seed Rafael Nadal
ATPMonday, 27 May 2024 at 00:30
John
McEnroe criticized the French Open for not seeding Rafael Nadal. According to
the American icon, it makes no sense that the 14-time Roland Garros champion
faces Alexander Zverev in the first round.
The German
arrives in great form after winning his first Masters 1000 in two years at the
Rome Open. Nadal and Zverev will face off on Monday on Court Phillipe Chatrier,
repeating the 2022 semifinals where Zverev left the court in a wheelchair after
an ankle injury.
McEnroe questions French Open's seeding decisions
Seeding
positions are usually determined based on ATP rankings, at least currently in
all Grand Slams. However, a few years ago, Wimbledon had a system for
determining seeds that considered players' long-term performance, particularly
in grass tournaments, so they were not exactly the same as the rankings.
After more
than a year where injuries have prevented him from playing enough, Nadal is
barely ranked No. 275 and it is the first time he plays the main draw of the
French Open without being a seed. In fact, he was always among the top six
seeds.
Luck was
not on Nadal's side as he will play against the world No. 4 in the first round.
McEnroe criticized the situation: “It makes no sense that someone who has won
14 times is not seeded. It is the way the tournament has always acted. For me
it is crazy,” the American told the media, as quoted by Marca.
Rafael Nadal at 2024 Madrid Open.
“It is the
most interesting first round of a Major that I remember and the toughest in the
Open Era for someone like Nadal,” he added. “He has to do whatever he wants. He
loves to compete and if he loses to Zverev it does not mean that all his
records at Roland Garros will be lost. Maybe his time has come to be a father
and everyone’s time has come.”
“Maybe I’m
wrong and he’ll be able to do something special here. It’s a question mark as
to how his body will recover as the rounds go by. On the one hand it will be a
surprise, and on the other it won’t. People like him, Novak, or Roger are
Superman.”
The 7-time
Grand Slam champion also commented that Zverev has good chances to win the
title: “[Zverev] has a real chance of winning in Paris if he focuses solely and
exclusively on tennis and not on other things off the court. I believe that the
2020 US Open should have been his. Sascha’s serve is working better than
ever,” McEnroe added.
Just In
Popular News
Latest Comments
- Why does Tennisuptodate feel like her PR Department's constant deluge of daily/weekly media submissions are 'tennis news' ?
mandoist19-11-2024 - 'Apologies', in cases like this where people are caught being their True Selves, are best shoved up their butts.mandoist19-11-2024
- Paolini playing Swiatek and then has to come back an hour later to play doubles. The BJ Cup is like the rest of tennis entrepreneurs.PalopoDave18-11-2024
- Nice amount
AceOfBase18-11-2024 - Bitchy Jean King just said (in interview) "the WTA players should stop whining about the schedule and just Play". That's how she really feels about "my girls".mandoist16-11-2024
