Not long ago Rafael Nadal was known for stepping onto a clay court and completely taking over. This year has shown a different side to the man who seemed unstoppable on clay. Continuing the decline on his favorite playing surface, the loss in Madrid brings him up to four for the year. With these losses being so close to the French Open, there are some doubts whether he will be back to his prior dominating self and be able to defend the title he has won five times in a row and nine of the last ten. Now rumors suggest that the onetime legend could be retiring.
All that being said, he did make it all the way to the finals in Madrid and lost against a very formidable opponent in Andy Murray. Murray agreed that Nadal is no slouch yet to the New York Times:
"For me, it was obviously a very tough match - you know, winning against Rafa on clay is extremely difficult, one of the hardest things in tennis."
That should help in the pursuit of his tenth title when the Open starts later this month. Nadal gave his take on the match to CNN:
"Even so, this week has been a very important week for me in which I have recovered sensations which I haven't felt on a tennis court for some time."
It seems that, even though he is not the unbeatable sliding machine that once owned most clay courts, he is still a force, especially if he is able to focus mentally. And with being the defending champion of the upcoming Grand Slam, he will have to fully recover his sensations to be able to hold off the likes of Murray, Djokovic and Federer to continue his Paris dominance.
Will Nadal be able to turn it around in time for the French Open? Do you think this is the year someone else takes the title? Tell us what you think.
