Is Rafael Nadal still the favorite for the French Open?

Rafael Nadal, unlike most years in recent memory, will be arriving at this year's French Open without a clay title to his name. After skipping the Monte-Carlo Masters and Barcelona Open due to a rib injury, the Spaniard suffered shock losses at the Madrid Open and Italian Open.

While it was eventual winner Carlos Alcaraz who ended his run in the quarterfinals in Madrid, Denis Shapovalov bested him in the third round in Rome. In both cases, the Mallorcan was stretched to three sets and fell feebly in the decider.

In the most recent loss against the Canadian, the 21-time Grand Slam champion was visibly limping during the final set, indicating that his persistent foot injury had flared up once again. The same injury was exacerbated during his semifinal loss against Novak Djokovic at Roland Garros last year, forcing Rafael Nadal to skip most of the rest of 2021.

With the loss, the former World No. 1's win/loss record for the year, which was 20-1 at the end of Indian Wells, has slipped to 23-3. As a result, oddsmakers have removed the 35-year-old as the favorite to win Roland Garros, replacing him with fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.

Speaking at his press conference after his loss to Shapovalov, Rafael Nadal spoke about living in pain and how it has continually affected his life. While the Spaniard did maintain that Paris was the ultimate aim, his chances haven't looked so slim in a long time.

"Unfortunately my day-by-day is difficult, honestly. Even like this, I am trying hard. Of course, it's difficult for me to accept the situation sometimes, no? Yeah, can be frustrating that a lot of days I can't practice the proper way," Nadal said.

It is hard to imagine a French Open where the 13-time winner will not be the favorite. In 2020, the tournament was delayed to October because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rafael Nadal came to Roland Garros with his best claycourt result being a quarterfinal finish at the Italian Open.

Despite that, he won the event without dropping a single set, even serving up a bagel to Novak Djokovic during their title clash. The only other instance since 2005 when the World No. 4 entered the French Open without winning one of the three Masters 1000 events on clay was 2015.

That year, the former World No. 1 suffered a shock in the quarterfinals, losing to Djokovic in straight sets and missing his chance to defend his title for the fifth time in a row.

Maybe for the first time in a long time, Nadal will not be the clear favorite at Roland Garros.

It could prove to be a blessing in disguise like at the 2022 Australian Open. He made the final after being written off by almost everyone and went on to win the trophy in remarkable fashion.

Facing Daniil Medvedev in the final, he was down two sets and faced three break points in the fifth game of the third set. Holding serve was pivotal as Rafael Nadal clawed his way back into the match, winning it in five sets to lift his 21st Grand Slam title.

Rafael Nadal could meet Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals this year at the French Open

Rafael Nadal could meet Novak Djokovic as early as the quarterfinals at Roland Garros this year

Both Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas were in contention to become World No. 4 after Rome. The Greek had to progress further than the Spaniard to seal a top-four seeding for Roland Garros and he did just that.

With Nadal being seeded fifth, he might have to face Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals of the French Open this year.

With the form the Serb has displayed this week, it's safe to say Djokovic will be the favorite should he meet Nadal.

However, if anybody can be counted on to put his injury behind himself and shock the world, it is the former World No. 1.

Even with the remarkable rise of Carlos Alcaraz and other claycourt specialists like Casper Ruud and Diego Schwartzman in the mix, the World No. 4 still should not be fully written off. As long as Rafael Nadal remains standing, he has a chance -- as we have been reminded time and again throughout the year.

Furthermore, a Grand Slam is very different from a Masters 1000 event in that seeded players have the luxury of ironing out flaws in the early rounds. For the first two or three rounds, the Mallorcan will likely play against players who are not that challenging -- unlike a Masters 1000 event where higher-ranked players meet earlier. That gives the 21-time Grand Slam champion the luxury of playing himself into shape -- something that he will benefit hugely from this year.

In a nutshell, the Spaniard is not the statistical favorite for the French Open. However, based on how often he has won on the Parisian clay, Nadal will still be a top contender for the title.

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Also Check Out :- French Open 2022 Schedule

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