By winning his 10th French Open title and the 15th Major overall, Rafael Nadal simply provided another plot twist of his professional also sending a thrill throughout the ATP circuit. Having the Spaniard in a dominant position on the red clay while Roger Federer took the first hardcourt swing for himself provided us with a distorted-like sense of time.
Although we're living in 2017, it seems like 2007. Clinching his first Grand Slam title in three years, Rafael Nadal opened new paths for the upcoming months. While Djokovic, Murray or Wawrinka will struggle to defend last year's result, he and Federer will keep on digging deeper during the second part of the season.
Smart-scheduling could help Nadal grow even stronger
Despite having some flaws during the first months of 2017, Rafael Nadal put everything on the right shelf. Playing injury-free has been of tremendous help, and now he can deliver the best tennis he can produce. After battling so hard during the clay court session, his schedule is now subject to some adjustments. It's a natural course of things given the fact that he was a front-runner in Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid, Rome and french open which are basically all big clay-court tournaments of the season.
In order to give his body a proper rest, Nadal withdrew from Aegon Championships at Queen's Club, an ATP 500 event which he had won in the past.
It would've been already a crowded place featuring players like Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka or Marin Cilic. Instead of playing a warm-up event prior to Wimbledon, the Spaniard is choosing the safer passage. Knowing his long history of injuries, it seems like the right approach.
Nadal needs consistency to secure the world no. 1 spot
As the gap separating Rafael Nadal from the first spot is closing fast, the tension is mounting at the top of the ATP ranking. For Andy Murray, the days at the top seem to have reached the end while Nadal is once again riding the wave. Murray must defend thousands of points over the next few months while Nadal's only concern are about a small harvest from the US Open.
Now, it's only a matter of time until the Spaniard or maybe even Roger Federer will surpass Murray in the ranking. Withdrawing from Queen's tournament is a sign that Nadal is determined to shift the balance towards his side this summer. Last year, he was forced to skip Wimbledon after suffering a wrist injury during the French Open from which he also had to pull out.
