Rivals support Nadal comeback bid

Updated January 02, 2013 10:18:36

Two of Rafael Nadal's top ten rivals have spoken out against critics who say that the winner of eleven major titles can never again be the player he was.

David Ferrer, the world number five from Spain, and Richard Gasquet, the French world number 10, both contradict the idea that Nadal's prolonged absence is too long even for him to become the world's best player again.

The murmurs of doubters increased with Friday's news on Nadal that his six months on the sidelines with a damaged knee will be followed by more weeks out, reportedly because of gastro-enteritis.

But Ferrer, voted Spanish player of the year in Nadal's absence, talks differently.

"The good news is he doesn't have pain in the knees, so that's the most important," he said, contradicting suggestions that the statement that Nadal has been unwell is merely cover for continued mobility problems.

"I spoke with him few a days ago. He was sick with a virus, and he preferred to stop (practising). And he will come back in South America (Acapulco in February).

"Rafael, he can do it because he's a very good player. He's a special player, no? He's not like anyone else. Rafael, he's very competitive, he's a winner, and he's young also.

"I have confidence that when he comes back he will play good.

"Maybe not in his first tournaments because they are often tough, but I am sure he is coming back to number two or number one in the world."

Gasquet sounds even more certain of Nadal's resilience, suggesting that the seven-time French Open champion will be adding to his record-breaking exploits as soon as June.

"For sure he has problem with his knee, but I'm sure he's coming back on clay in a month, and I'm sure he will be ready for Monte Carlo, that kind of tournament," Gasquet said.

"He will be 100 per cent. I'm pretty sure he will come back at his best level soon.

"He's coming back on a clay court, which is better for his knee. For sure he will come back at his top form for Monte Carlo (in April), these kind of tournaments. And for me he's still the favourite for Roland Garros.

"Nadal is one of the best. He's incredible. I'm sure he will come back at his best level, and that he can still win a lot of grand slams."

Asked therefore why there were so many people who doubted that such things were possible, Gasquet had a one-word answer - "journalists."

AFP

Tags: tennis, sport, spain

First posted January 01, 2013 08:07:05

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Hewitt set for Halle comeback

Posted June 2, 2011 20:22:00

Injury-troubled Lleyton Hewitt is set to fast-track his Wimbledon preparations by cramming in as many matches as possible at Halle and Eastbourne in the next fortnight.

The former Wimbledon champion is expected to play in his first tournament in three months at the ATP event in Germany following his late withdrawal from the French Open last month.

Hewitt has in the past tended to play only one tournament on grass in the lead-up to the third grand slam of year.

However he is desperately trying to gain as much match fitness as possible before a 13th straight trip to the famed south-west London venue.

There have been concerns over the former world No.1's fragile body following foot surgery in March.

The official reason given for him pulling out just hours before being due to walk onto court at Roland Garros was a left ankle complaint.

But it is understood he has suffered a flare up of a toe injury.

"He will definitely be heading to Halle next week (to defend his title)," said his manager David Drysdale.

"Everything seems to be going OK.

"Lleyton has been getting out on the court and had some treatment."

Grass has been the former world No.1's most successful surface, having won 101 of 125 matches on it during his career.

Only once in his last seven visits to Wimbledon has he been defeated by a player outside the top six.

Hewitt upset Roger Federer in the final in Halle last year before the Australian had his progress at Wimbledon stopped in the fourth round by Novak Djokovic in four sets.

"He has always enjoyed playing on the surface and it is a surface that he has done well on," said Drysdale.

"He wants to play as many matches as he can before Wimbledon."

The South Australian has not played since an opening round loss at Indian Wells in early March.

-AAP

Tags: sport, tennis, australia

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Roche backs Hewitt's French comeback

Posted May 9, 2011 16:23:00

Master coach Tony Roche has hailed Lleyton Hewitt the toughest competitor he has ever encountered as Australia's tennis warrior targets a shock comeback at this month's French Open.

Roche and Hewitt will fly to Europe on Thursday, with the former world number one boldly planning to contest the claycourt grand slam beginning on Sunday week despite having not played for more than two months.

The 30-year-old underwent foot surgery in March but Hewitt is once again prepared to play through the pain barrier.

"I think he's used to that. Look, he'd be the toughest competitor that I've seen," Roche said on Monday.

"He's had a lot of setbacks the last couple of years but he keeps bouncing back.

"He keeps wanting to improve and he's so keen, which is great for Australian tennis because we need him to hang in there."

Roche's opinion comes highly qualified - the 1963 French Open champion has guided all-time greats Roger Federer, Ivan Lendl and Pat Rafter to more than a dozen grand slam titles.

And indeed Hewitt's powers of recovery are nothing short of amazing.

Time and again, the two-time major winner has gone under the knife only to return and contend almost immediately at the slams.

Last year, Hewitt was sidelined for almost four months following a second round of hip surgery and a knee operation before upstaging the mighty Federer on grass in the Halle final and then almost beating Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon.

He reached the quarter-finals of the 2006 US Open despite carrying a knee injury that threatened his very participation.

His finest effort playing under duress in Paris came in 2008 when he lobbed at Roland Garros without having contested a single match on the surface and pushed fifth-seeded claycourt specialist David Ferrer to five sets in the third round.

Despite all the setbacks, Hewitt is the only active player - Federer and the king of clay Rafael Nadal included - to have made the last 32 on 10 straight visits to Paris.

It has taken Nadal to end four of Hewitt's past five French campaigns and Roche is not ruling out another strong run from his tenacious charge.

"It's his first tournament back from his operation. It's a big ask, but he could do it if he got the right draw," he said.

"Unfortunately, he's not going to be seeded so you've got to rely on a good passage through that first week and not running into, say, the top three or four guys.

"But Lleyton is still as keen as ever. He feels in the grand slams, given the right opportunity, that he can still be competitive with the top guys."

Roche said ideally the two-time French quarter-finalist would win a couple of rounds in Paris to gain some valuable match practice before the grasscourt season.

"I know he's looking forward to Wimbledon, getting on the grass," Roche said.

"He sees that surface as being well suited to his game.

"Two years ago, he lost to (Andy) Roddick in five sets (in the quarter-finals) and actually had a break in the fifth and Roddick came up with an unbelievable shot and Roddick nearly beat Federer in the final.

"So he's not too far away. One point there and he could have been in the final.

"So if he gets the matches under his belt and good preparation, he can do very, very well at Wimbledon."

- AAP

Tags: sport, tennis, australia, france

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