Rafael Nadal on brink of creating tennis history after overcoming pre-Australian Open fears

Prior to the Australian Open getting underway, Rafael Nadal uttered the words ‘I don’t expect’ when assessing his chances in the first Grand Slam of the year.

This is a player who has won 20 major titless, been at the very top of his sport for well over 15 years, and always demands the best from himself.

Yet for once, Nadal was heading into a major tournament with far from ideal preparations and with little pressure or expectation on him.

‘I don’t expect; I just try to go day by day,’ he said in the lead up to the tournament.

‘I know the situation is not ideal for me to try to have an amazing result on the first Grand Slam.

‘But you never know. If you are not here, it is difficult to have any chance. Being here, I want to try my best.’

Nadal’s words of caution came amid a difficult six months for the 35-year-old.

The former world No.1 missed the second half of the 2021 season due to a foot injury and only made his return to the court at the exhibition Mubadala World Tennis Championship in December, and then tested positive for coronavirus in the lead up to Christmas.

Just a few days before flying to Australia he still didn’t even know if he was fit enough to play and contemplated pulling out altogether.

Fast forward nearly two weeks and the man who said it’s ‘not ideal to try to have an amazing result on the first Grand Slam’ is in fact now on the brink of creating tennis history after becoming the fourth-oldest man to reach the Australian Open final in the Open era.

After seeing off Matteo Berrettini in four sets, Nadal booked his place in Sunday’s final where he’ll meet world No.2 Daniil Medvedev, and bid to become the first male player to win 21 career Grand Slams.

Nadal, whose last title came at the 2020 French Open, is