Paris Masters tournament director Cedric Pioline acknowledged this is the period of the season when Rafael Nadal is often hampered by physical issues but still he believes this might be the year when the Spaniard finally wins it all at Bercy.
Nadal, 36, made his Paris Masters main draw debut in 2007. In his first Paris debut, Nadal made the final before losing to David Nalbandian. A bit stunningly, Nadal hasn’t had any final appearances at the Paris Masters since 2007.
After suffering a shock US Open round-of-16 defeat to Frances Tiafoe, Nadal returned home to be with his pregnant. Nadal, who became a father this month, is set to return to action in Paris. “As for Rafa, we know that it’s always a difficult period of the season for him.
He’s often in difficulty. We have seen it at the US Open. It was in the round of 16 that he actually lost, if I’m not mistaken. He’s trying to be top one. He’s never hoisted the trophy here. Maybe it could be a first time for him.
Why not?” Pioline said, per Sportskeeda.
Pioline: Nadal knows how to win when is not expected to win
After missing almost the entire second part of the 2021 season, Nadal returned by winning the Australian Open in January.
Then, Nadal was heavily hampered by foot pain prior to the French Open. Going into the French Open, some had doubts and thought this would be the year Nadal wouldn’t enjoying another winning run at Roland Garros. Like many times before in his career, Nadal overcome the challenges and ended as the champion.
Going into the Paris Masters, Pioline underlines that Nadal can never be underestimated. “We’re accustomed to being surprised by his achievements. Like Roland Garros, we would think that he will not win, and he finds a great energy at the last moment,” Pioline added.
