Boris Becker emphasized in an exclusive interview with Eurosport that he thinks Rafael Nadal might have to “struggle” during the early phases of his recovery from a chronic hip injury.
In anticipation of the first Grand Slam of 2024 at the Australian Open, which will air live on Eurosport and Discovery+, Rafael Nadal will make his Melbourne Park debut for the first time in nearly a year.
Becker thinks the 22-time Grand Slam champion is setting reasonable expectations for the Melbourne tournament and doesn’t think the Spaniard will start to click until the clay-court season begins.
Becker stated to Eurosport Germany’s “Das Gelbe vom Ball” podcast, “I don’t think his expectations for Melbourne are sky-high right now: if he wins a few matches there, good for him.”
After that, he’ll focus on the early clay-court competitions. He will undoubtedly play in Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, and possibly even Rome to get back to full fitness for Paris.
His objective must be to win both the Olympics and Roland Garros, which will take place on clay in Paris.
However, he must play first because he can only improve his match fitness and match experience by participating in matches. As a result, he must endure some minor discomfort in order to improve in March and April before being at his best in May.
The German then focused on Novak Djokovic, who, since Nadal’s absence, has eclipsed the Spaniard in the men’s Grand Slam singles record book. Djokovic won his 24th and most recent major at the US Open this year.
At 36, Becker remarked, “You’re not really meant to play tennis like that.”
What is the point at which the guy loses motivation or becomes exhausted?
“Novak is the king of the tennis scene. He defeated [Carlos] Alcaraz in the spectacular Wimbledon final and won three of the four Grand Slams [in 2023].
That game was the best of the year, in my opinion. Respect all the other champions, but Djokovic’s performance against Alcaraz was extraordinary.
In light of this, Becker believes that the younger generation, led by Alcaraz and composed of players like Holger Rune and Jannik Sinner, will be able to exert even more pressure on the Serbian in the upcoming season.
“He’ll be 37 years old in May of next year, and Alcaraz and company will be older and more seasoned,” Becker stated.
“I believe that Djokovic’s continued success and the younger generation’s closer relationship would be the best things that can happen for the tennis scene overall.
To put it another way, I still think Djokovic will win one or more Grand Slams. However, I also think that Alcaraz and company will frequently throw a wrench in things. “I hope that this rivalry between the all-time greatest player and the rest of the tennis world continues for a long time because we amateur players and tennis fans benefit from it,” the man said.
