Rafael Nadal more 'fun' to watch than Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer, says Mats Wilander after French Open

07.06.2022 - 13:21 eurosport.com

Mats Wilander says he finds Rafael Nadal more “fun” to watch than Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer – and is “blown away” by the way he hits the ball.

Nadal, 35, continued his French Open dominance by winning a record-extending 22nd Grand Slam title in Paris, beating Casper Ruud in the final.

Ad/> The Spaniard is now two clear of long-time rivals Djokovic and Federer in the all-time Grand Slam standings. Roland-GarrosRanking shake-up: Medvedev set for No.

1, Djokovic to fall, Nadal to No. 4YESTERDAY AT 08:28 While Federer is usually labelled the most graceful of the trio, Wilander is enjoying Nadal’s style of play more than ever. “The older I get, the more I enjoy watching him play,” the seven-time Grand Slam champion and Eurosport analyst told L’Equipe. “We see that he trusts his variations more than when he was 22 or 23 years old.

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Holger Rune has defended his behaviour, accusing tennis legend Roger Federer of being “40 times worse” than him at his age. Rune had trouble controlling his emotions in his French Open quarter-final defeat to Casper Ruud at the beginning of June, as he argued repeatedly with the umpire, and even yelled at his mother to leave the arena. Ad/> He barely acknowledged Ruud after the match, offering a half-hearted high five at the net before heading for the locker room, where the drama reportedly continued.

Rafael Nadal's 'motivation' key to his injury management and longevity, says top physio Stephen Mutch

Rafael Nadal's concern for Alexander Zverev's ankle injury was obvious. Suffering from a chronic foot injury himself, the Spaniard knows the agony an injured state can cause. Wearing a worried look, Nadal empathised with Zverev, who was writhing in pain on the Roland Garros clay as the doctor checked on him. A few days after his 14th French Open triumph, the 22-time Grand Slam winner was at the doctor's clinic himself. In the lead-up to the clay-court Grand Slam, Nadal's chronic injury, the Mueller-Weiss Syndrome in medical terms, flared up at the Rome Masters. It's an injury that Nadal has been managing for years and one that kept him on the sidelines for most of last year. But his drive to excel is perhaps unmatched, which is what fueled Nadal's record-making comeback at the Australian Open. He defeated a red-hot Daniil Medvedev in the final to win his 21st Grand Slam trophy -- going past Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. But Nadal's favourite clay season this time didn't begin like it ended. In Rome, the foot didn't cooperate and Nadal lost to Denis Shapovalov in the round-of-16 clash. On top of that, he had a rib fracture. "Everybody knows in the world of tennis that the preparation (for the French Open) was not ideal," Nadal told Eurosport. "I have been outside of the practice courts for one month and a half with a stress fracture on the rib. And then I have the foot that is something that stays there all the time. In Rome, it was very difficult. But I've had my doctor here (at Roland Garros) with me and we played with no feeling in the foot."

"Statue Is Not Enough": Roger Federer's Coach Calls For French Open Centre Court To Be Renamed After Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal is the toast of the tennis world and the sports fraternity after overcoming severe physical obstacles to win the French Open 2022 men's singles title. Nadal brushed aside the challenge of Casper Ruud in straight sets on Sunday to capture his 14th title at Roland Garros and this extended his record to 22 grand slam titles, two ahead of his primary rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. What must have been satisfying for the Spaniard is the fact that he defeated Djokovic in the quarters to win this title. Nadal had lost to Djokovic in the semi-final last year, which allowed the Serbian to win his 2nd French Open title in 2021.

Rafael Nadal ‘more fun’ to watch than Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, says former world No 1

Mats Wilander says he no longer wants to commentate on Rafael Nadal’s matches as he “just wants to watch him play” as he is often blown away by the Spaniard’s touches.