Rafael Nadal is French Open favorite even without match experience, believes Coco Gauff

Rafael Nadal's participation in this year's Roland Garros is under massive question following the injury he suffered earlier this year. However, fans are still rooting for a possible return for the 36-year-old at the French Open. Similarly, young tennis star Coco Gauff believes that the 'King of Clay' still has a chapter to write in the history of his favorite Major and that he'll successfully come back to do so.

Rafael Nadal was seen in action for the last time at the Australian Open, where he faced Mackenzie McDonald in the second round. The match ended in a loss for the Spaniard, and unfortunately, he walked out of the tennis court in extreme pain. Since then, the 22-time Grand Slam winner has been sidelined due to a hip injury.

After Coco Gauff recorded a comfortable win over Yulia Putintseva in the second round of the 2023 Italian Open at Grandstand, she was asked a number of questions in the post-match press conference.

Consequently, one of the questions was about Rafael Nadal possibly missing this year's French Open. The moderator asked Gauff about what it would mean to the Clay Major if the Spaniard missed it due to his injury. She was also asked if she thinks Nadal will require practice matches before returning to the clay courts.

"I mean, if he goes, I'm going to take him to Paris any day. I don't think he needs match experience. I'm sure he probably would have preferred to play some matches before. I think that him and Roland Garros is something special," Coco Gauff said.

Gauff insisted that Nadal's prowess on clay shouldn't be doubted. She also addressed his last year's campaign in Paris, where he stunned several top players, including defending champion Novak Djokovic, to get his crown back. The 19-year-old also regarded the 22-time Grand Slam champion as the GOAT (Greatest of All Time), especially on the red dirt.

"There's been times, I remember last year, he was having that problem, completely lost that match, didn't look like he was going to be ready at all. I made the mistake of doubting him. Next thing you know, he pretty much stormed his way to the final and won straight sets. He's just a GOAT in that way, a GOAT on clay, someone you can't underestimate," Coco Gauff added.

Coco Gauff storms into the third round of the Italian Open with a win over Yulia Putintseva

Internazionali BNL D'Italia 2023 - Day Four

19-year-old Coco Gauff has cemented herself as a top young star in the world of tennis. She portrayed a similar agile attacking style against Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva in the second round of the Italian Open on Thursday.

The current World No. 5 handed the Kazakh a straight-set defeat with a scoreline of 6-0, 6-1 in just 59 minutes. Following her dominant win, she secured a berth in the third round of the clay court competition. Here, she'll face the Czech Republic's Marie Bouzková as her Round of 32 opponent on Saturday.