{"id":294790,"date":"2023-11-22T18:09:20","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T18:09:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportsloveme.com\/?p=294790"},"modified":"2023-11-22T18:09:20","modified_gmt":"2023-11-22T18:09:20","slug":"carlos-alcarazs-coach-makes-rafael-nadal-prediction-ahead-of-comeback","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportsloveme.com\/tennis\/carlos-alcarazs-coach-makes-rafael-nadal-prediction-ahead-of-comeback\/","title":{"rendered":"Carlos Alcaraz’s coach makes Rafael Nadal prediction ahead of comeback"},"content":{"rendered":"

Carlos Alcaraz wins Wimbledon men's singles title<\/h3>\n

Carlos Alcaraz\u2019s coach thinks Rafael Nadal has what it takes to return to a high level of tennis again. The 37-year-old has not played since January after suffering a hip injury in the second round of the Australian Open.<\/p>\n

The Spaniard underwent arthroscopic hip surgery to fix the problem and has been training hard over the last several months in a bid to make a comeback in 2024. When announcing his withdrawal from this year\u2019s French Open, his first time missing the tournament since 2004, Nadal admitted the 2024 season may be the last of his illustrious career.<\/p>\n

He has played down his chances of challenging the top players next year but Juan Carlos Ferrero, who won Roland Garros in 2003 and now coaches Alcaraz, has not ruled out Nadal returning to the top of his game. \u201cHe will surely return wanting to compete because he has a competitive animal inside him,\u201d the former World No. 1 told Spanish news outlet Marca.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see it as logical that he does not see himself competing with Djokovic, or against the best right now, because he has been out of competition for a long time and it is always difficult to get started. But once he is on the track, his mentality of competing at his best will not change. In the [2022] Australian Open that he won against [Daniil] Medvedev, it was thought that he had less chances and he won.<\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

\u201cThose who are very, very good always come up with something different from the others and I wouldn\u2019t be surprised to see them at the highest level again. How long? Whatever it gives him physically, but I don\u2019t think he\u2019ll be satisfied with winning two games.\u201d<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t until last week that Nadal confirmed he would be returning to the tour. The Mallorcan has made significant progress in his training and believes he can be competitive in the sport once again. With Djokovic in imperious form and the younger players continuing to improve, Nadal, who turns 38 next year, faces the toughest test of his career when he returns to action.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know it will be difficult to return to a very high level of tennis, but if I did not have the hope of being competitive again, I would not have done the work I did these months,\u201d he said. \u201cThe effort that must be made after a very long career, which the years weigh on. I\u2019m not going to win more Grand Slams than Novak Djokovic, but I\u2019m going to give myself the opportunity to have fun again.\u201d<\/p>\n

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