Rafael Nadal’s future in doubt after loss to Alex Zverev

There were enough doubts about world No. 1s Novak Djokovic and Iga Świątek, as well as Nadal’s Spanish successor Carlos Alcaraz, who packed into the frenetic Court Philippe-Chatrier just in case.

From Nadal’s wife Maria Francesca Perello to his father Sebastian, Nadal’s longtime coach Carlos Moya and Spanish Tennis Federation president Miguel Diaz Roman, the vast majority of the crowd were disappointed with his first-ever first-round loss at Roland Garros.

Nadal, making a rare visit to Paris as an unseeded player, played his best tennis of the year in a very tough draw with Rome champion and world number four Alexander Zverev.

The 37-year-old legend played well in the second and third sets, leading Zverev by a point (Zverev’s domestic violence case will go to court in Germany mid-tournament, and Zverev does not need to attend), but couldn’t hold on. Every time Nadal fell behind, Zverev quickly caught up and looked every bit the title contender he claimed to be.

Earlier, on a rainy day in Paris, Świątek, the women’s champion for two consecutive years, easily advanced to the second round under the roof of Court Philippe-Chatrier, losing only three games, which was another reminder of how times have changed.

Even so, Nadal was able to challenge one of the sport’s best players after a short preparation, which is perhaps why it was so difficult for him to give up.

For Zverev, it was a much more pleasant experience than their last meeting on this court.

That epic semi-final two years ago ended prematurely as the German player sprained his right ankle and tore three transverse ligaments, and then left the court in a wheelchair.

“I have to congratulate Sasha (Zverev) for this great match and for the win last week in Rome and I really wish you all the best in the rest of your tournaments,” Nadal said.

“I know 2022 has been a very difficult time for you so you deserve more so congratulations and I wish you all the best.

“I’ve had two very difficult years in terms of injuries. I went through it all with the dream of returning to Roland Garros. It’s true that the first round (draw) wasn’t ideal… I was competitive and I had my chances, but against a great player like Sasha, it wasn’t enough.”

Zverev gave a brief, elegant speech before Nadal but quickly gave way to the 22-time Grand Slam winner to take center stage.

“Honestly, I don’t know what to say. First of all, on behalf of the entire tennis community, I want to thank Rafa,” Zverev said.

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“It’s an honor to play against you all. I watched Rafa play throughout my childhood and when I turned professional I was lucky enough to play against Rafa. I was lucky enough to play against him twice on this beautiful court and I don’t know what to say – today was not my moment, it was Rafa’s moment.”

Nadal took a long time to decide whether to play this year’s clay-court major because he was barely able to perform at his best level on the clay courts where he was virtually unbeatable for much of his Hall of Fame career.

The former world number one still has the will to play, but despite competing in Brisbane, poor fitness prevented him from returning to action at this year’s Australian Open, and he has since withdrawn from tournaments several times, even throughout the clay-court season.

Once Nadal finally started playing, he suddenly became a mortal.

Alex de Minaur becomes first Australian to beat Nadal on clay at Barcelona, ​​but admitted soon afterwards that the outcome would have been different if the Spaniard had been at his peak.

Nadal bounced back a week later in Madrid to exact revenge on the top Australian player, but he has failed to even make the quarterfinals in any of the four clay-court events he has played in 2024.

At the French Open, he took to the court as a clear underdog – another new feeling – but brought plenty of cheers for his many admirers.

Nadal tightened his shorts, pumped his fists vigorously after winning crucial points and was generally full of energy, fighting as tenaciously as ever.

There were sublime low volley winners, screaming straight forehands (including one brilliant one after a Zverev overhead drive) and fearless shots in moments when others would have balked.

But Nadal found it difficult to match Zverev’s powerful baseline shots most of the time, so he could only switch to serve and volley tactics to shorten the rounds as much as possible.

As de Minaur said after beating him in Barcelona: He is no longer the Nadal who dominated France for more than a decade.

The competition was drawing to a close, but the Parisian audience was still happy to have the opportunity to watch the master perform one last time.

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