Not the ideal start for Rafael Nadal ahead of Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal

World No 1 and recently crowned French Open champion Rafael Nadal was dumped off by German wild card in a spectacular fashion yesterday. In what seemed to be a tough first set, his second set performance surprised everyone, as he just avoided receiving a bagel. Dustin Brown, ranked 85 in the world, is the lowest ranked player to defeat the World No. 1 since Mardy Fish(then World No 98) defeated Roger Federer in 2008.

It’s an inauspicious start for Nadal, who’s grass court woes have increased exponentially since his defeat to Novak Djokovic at SW19 in 2011.

Although it is a hard-reality check for Nadal fans, it was not completely unexpected. There were ominous signs from Rafa himself, who, in spite of being fatigued from the French Open, decided to practice just hours after his arrival in Halle. He seemed quite pessimistic going into the tournament, and lost to an inspired Dustin Brown.

Now the exact reason for his loss revolves around his back. After his back problems came back to haunt him in the French Open, his service speeds have drastically reduced. Rafa, a self confessed modest server, reduced his serve upto 20km/hr until the semi-finals, where he was serving around 180-190 km/hr. Though such speeds are effective in clay courts, where he incorporates his topspin, it definitely fails on grass.

His loss to Brown is a clear indicator of that. His first service was absolutely smashed off by Brown, as Rafa managed to win only 69% of them while he won a modest 40% on his second serve. Moreover, his movement and return was hampered by fatigue, as he was able to win only 13 points of his return out of 51.

Though yesterday's result will not be a pure indicator of his build-up to Wimbledon, it will be pretty unrealistic to expect him to perform exceptionally well in SW19. He would not risk his now-vulnerable back ahead of the hard-court season, where he has to defend about 5000 points.

But the Rafa we all know is a hardcore fighter, and it will be foolish to underestimate him. He must be aware of his flaws in his game on grass, and would definitely work on it.

Hopefully, he prepares well for Wimbledon, considering his physical and technical constraints. Don’t be surprised if we don’t see him in the second week at Wimbledon.