Rafael Nadal will not be a serious contender for any Grand Slams in 2024, even Roland Garros, says former Serena Williams coach Rick Macci.
Nadal looks on track to return to tennis in January after a year out with a hip problem, with the Australian Open looking like a realistic target for him.
It is a tournament he has won before immediately after returning from injury, and he also played through a foot problem on the way to that title in 2022. He then did the same to win the French Open a few months later.
Macci, who has also coached Andy Roddick, Venus Williams and Maria Sharapova, is far from convinced Nadal has another achievement in him like that again, though.older, you lose a little mobility and people aren’t afraid when they know you’re vulnerable,” Macci told Tennis Infinity.
“There’s not that much difference between the guys at the top and then the next tier, and when they know they have a chance, that’s a whole different thing, even on clay.”
It is that mental head start that Nadal had before, especially on clay, that may have been eroded by his injury, according to Macci.
That said, there still won’t be many people hoping to play the Spaniard at Roland Garros.
