'There days before trip to Australia…,' Uncle Toni Nadal recalls Rafael Nadal’s 2022 Australian Open campaign to show confidence about his Roland Garros chances

Three days before the trip to Australia, he had Covid but he tested negative, and he still didn't know if he should travel. Finally, he decided to go for it, starting with a little preparation, and he won the tournament. Toni Nadal told Diarios de Bicicleta (via LaSexta)

Nadal has arrived in Paris where the qualifiers round is currently underway. He probably hasn’t yet informed the French Tennis Federation about his decision to play in the event. The 37-year-old has also started his training and, in all possibilities, he will play at the Roland Garros, maybe for the last time. 

Toni Nadal said Rafael Nadal doesn’t play elegantly like Roger Federer 

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal share 42 Grand Slam singles titles between them and have entertained the tennis fraternity by locking horns and playing quality tennis in Grand Slam events. Uncle Toni Nadal, during the same interview with Diarios de Bicicleta, heaped praise on Nadal, saying that even though he doesn’t have Federer’s elegance, he still racks up wins despite being in tough situations.

My nephew is very talented because he is the player who has hit the best in uncomfortable positions, although he does not have the elegance of Federer. Toni Nadal said 

Toni also talked about the Big 3 (Federer, Nadal, and Novak Djokovic) and how they affected each other’s careers. He said that Nadal, who has two Wimbledon titles, would probably have won one more if Federer had not been there on the scene. 

Nadal has locked horns with Federer 40 times and leads the head-to-head record 24-16. At Wimbledon, they have met four times, out of which they met in the final three times (2006, 2007, and 2008). Nadal racked up the win only in 2008. Their last face-off at SW19 was in 2019 in the semifinal stage, which Federer won (but got defeated by Djokovic in the final).

Although Federer has retired from the game in 2022, Nadal has said that he probably would hang up his racket after this season. He last played at the Italian Open in its second round.