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"I think he's going to win majors next year, but the question is will he be ready for the Australian Open? That's something I don't know"

Last Updated: 14/11/17 8:08pm



Rusedski: Rafa has more majors in him
Greg and Peter said they have no worries on Rafael Nadal's return to tennis, after the world number one pulled out of the ATP Finals for his reoccurring knee injury.
Greg and Peter said they have no worries on Rafael Nadal's return to tennis, after he pulled out of the ATP Finals with a knee injury
"Rafa has a lot more majors and a lot more great tennis ahead of him," Greg Rusedski believes Rafael Nadal will hopefully be back stronger than ever in 2018.

Nadal quit the ATP Finals after a painful defeat by Belgium's David Goffin on Monday evening at London's O2 as his troublesome knee finally gave in.


Nadal season ends in Goffin defeat
Rafael Nadal pulls out of ATP Finals in London after losing to David Goffin
The Spaniard is already assured of ending the year as world No 1 having won a 10th French Open title and the US Open.


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But despite 75 singles titles in his illustrious career, including 16 Grand Slams and 30 Masters events, he has yet to triumph at the ATP Finals and has now pulled out of the season-ending tournament for the sixth time in 13 attempts due to injury.


VOTE: Who will win the ATP Finals?
Federer, Zverev, Thiem, Cilic, Dimitrov, Goffin, Sock & Carreno Busta. Pick your winner...

You're 31 years of age - do you want to take this risk?

Rusedski on Nadal's decision to play at ATP Finals
Sky Sports' analyst Rusedski could not understand why the 31-year-old "took risks" in order to play in London, but does feel he will be back winning Grand Slams next year.

"He made a commitment to this event, he said 'I'm going to try and play one match'. I think before this match, had it not been the ATP Finals, I don't even think he would have played," said former US Open finalist, Rusedski.

"So in Paris the injury was already pretty bad. Maybe he took some painkillers or got an injection and said, 'I'm going to play one match and that's it'. In retrospect you wonder whether that was the right decision.

"He knows what the treatments have to be to get this problem resolved, but at the end of the day you think to yourself, 'you're 31 years of age - do you want to take this risk?'

"He has accomplished everything in the sport apart from winning this event and then you see him grimacing like that. You wonder how much will this set him back for 2018? That's where Roger Federer looks at the crystal ball that little bit better."


And when asked my host Marcus Buckland whether or not he thinks Nadal can come back from this setback, Rusedski added: "Yes, I think he's going to win majors next year, but the question is will he be ready for the Australian Open? That's something I don't know.

"I think Rafa's still got a lot more majors and a lot more great tennis ahead of him."

Marat Safin does not see Novak Djokovic returning to ‘very high levels’ in the future and believes Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer will continue to dominate tennis in 2018. The 12-time Grand Slam champion was forced to end his season early due to an elbow problem and hasn’t played a competitive match since retiring from his quarter-final clash with Tomas Berdych at Wimbledon. Djokovic has joined an unusually large number of ATP stars on the sidelines this season, with Andy Murray, Stan Wawrinka, Kei Nishikori and Milos Raonic among the most high-profile casualties.
In the absence of the top-five players in 2016, Federer and Nadal have split the four Grand Slams between them and sit atop of the ATP rankings heading into the new season. The pair embarked on their own comebacks at the start of the year, with Federer struggling with a knee issue and Nadal a wrist problem, and attention has now turned to how the returning gang of 2018 will adapt.

Former world No. 1 Safin is expecting Murray to have plenty of ups and downs, although insists he will struggle to maintain a consistent challenge against the established duo, but he has concluded that Djokovic won’t return to the top level full stop. ‘The next season Nadal and Federer will always be in the lead, while I do not see Djokovic able to return to very high levels, for him it will be a difficult situation,’ he told Live Tennis. ‘Murray will have some highs and lows, but if Nadal and Federer do not hurt, he will not be able to do anything.’

Marat Safin uważa, że w 2018 roku Roger Federer i Rafael Nadal znów będą dominować w męskim tenisie. Utytułowany Rosjanin nie widzi większych szans na powrót na szczyt Novaka Djokovicia oraz Andy'ego Murraya.



Media: Radek Stepanek trenerem Novaka Djokovicia
- W następnym sezonie Nadal i Federer pozostaną w czołówce, natomiast nie widzę powrotu Djokovicia na najwyższy poziom. Dla niego będzie to trudna sytuacja - powiedział Marat Safin. Novak Djoković przedwcześnie zakończył sezon 2017 z powodu kontuzji łokcia. Od paru tygodni trenuje już normalnie i kompletuje sztab na nowy rok. Jego trenerem ma być Andre Agassi. Czeska prasa informowała, że pomagać Serbowi ma również Radek Stepanek.
Safin, dwukrotny triumfator imprez wielkoszlemowych i były numer jeden rankingu ATP, ocenił również szanse Andy'ego Murraya w przyszłym sezonie. Brytyjczyk stracił drugą część 2017 roku z powodu urazu biodra. - Murray będzie miał wzloty i upadki, jednak jeśli Nadal i Federer nie doznają żadnych kontuzji, to nie będzie mógł nic zrobić.

W opinii Safina Roger Federer i Rafael Nadal powinni zdominować rozgrywki w 2018 roku. Co ciekawe to Hiszpan robi większe wrażenie na byłym najlepszym tenisiście świata. - Nadal jest bardziej imponujący od Federera. Szwajcar miał wszystko, aby osiągnąć sukces, natomiast Hiszpan musiał na to ciężko pracować. Wylewa na korcie więcej potu i do tego się nie męczy - przyznał urodzony w Moskwie 37-latek.

REKLAMA

Rosjanin stwierdził, że od czasu zakończenia przez niego kariery w 2009 roku niewiele się zmieniło. Jest jednak przekonany, że już wkrótce coraz więcej do powiedzenia będą mieli młodzi gracze. - Tenisiści powyżej 30. roku życia będą musieli oddać miejsce młodszym, którzy są szybsi i z czasem się poprawiają. Alexander Zverev ma spory potencjał, ale ciągle jest bardzo młody. Za rok lub dwa będzie już innym zawodnikiem. Musi tylko wierzyć w siebie i cały czas pracować. Współczesny tenis jest bowiem bardziej fizyczny i szybszy. Tenisiści mają mniej czasu na myślenie i to jest dobra rzecz - powiedział Safin.

Paul Annacone jest przekonany, że po wyleczeniu urazów Novak Djoković i Andy Murray znów będą w czołówce. - Nie widzę powodów, dla których obaj w przyszłym sezonie nie mieliby być na szczycie razem z Federerem i Nadalem - stwierdził Amerykanin.

Marcin Motyka
Marcin Motyka
02 Grudnia 2017, 09:55
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Getty Images / AK BijuRaj / Na zdjęciu: Novak Djoković
Paul Annacone, znakomity trener, w przeszłości szkoleniowiec m.in. Rogera Federera i Pete'a Samprasa, dołączył do grona ekspertów, zastanawiających się, jak Novak Djoković oraz Andy Murray będę prezentować się po powrocie do rozgrywek. I jest przekonany, że bez przeszkód ponownie zagoszczą w czołówce męskiego tenisa.


Novak Djoković rozpocznie współpracę ze Stepankiem. "Za radą Andre ściągnąłem Radka"
- Kiedy są zdrowi, są wielkimi tenisistami - powiedział Annacone, cytowany przez portal ubitennis.com. - A wielkość się nie kończy, zwłaszcza w tak młodym wieku, w jakim są. Nie widzę powodów, dla których obaj w przyszłym sezonie nie mieliby być na szczycie razem z Federerem i Nadalem.

Amerykański trener jest ciekawy dyspozycji Djokovicia i Murraya na początku sezonu. Szczególnie podczas wielkoszlemowego Australian Open. - Nie wiem, w jakiej są formie fizycznej i jak będą się prezentować na początku sezonu. Ale z ich stylem gry, który nie daje im wielu łatwo wygranych punktów, muszą ciężko pracować, aby się dobrze przygotować do rywalizacji w formule do trzech wygranych setów.

Djoković i Murray pauzują od lipca z powodu odpowiednio kontuzji łokcia i urazu biodra. W pierwszym tygodniu 2018 roku obaj planują wystąpić w turnieju w Dosze, a następnie mają pojawić się na starcie Australian Open (15-28 stycznia). Pod koniec grudnia Serb planuje również rozegrać pokazówkę w Abu Zabi.

This has been a historic year in men's tennis, and it ended with yet another surprise at the ATP World Tour Finals last week in London. After a year dominated by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, who finished ranked Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, neither appeared in the tour's own championship final. Instead, two players who had never even qualified for the tournament before met for the trophy, with Grigor Dimitrov snatching the win from David Goffin.

You can't be blamed for wondering what on earth can 2018 have in store. Here are five predictions for the coming year:

Grand Slams will produce four different champions

Federer and Nadal divvied up the four major titles in 2017, but that's unlikely to happen again.

Face it, Federer is 36. He has a history of back trouble, which forced him to alter his schedule and pull out of a number of events this year. He'll take good care of himself, limit his appearances and have a few great runs (Wimbledon, anyone?). But the consistency he had in 2017 will be impossible to maintain.


Roger Federer, left, and Rafael Nadal each won two Grand Slams in 2017, a year during which a variety of contenders were plagued by injuries. AP Photo/Andy Wong
Nadal, 31, is in a similar position, but his physical condition is more perilous. He hobbled out of the 2017 season on a bad right knee, the most recent in a career-long struggle with joint problems. Like Federer, Nadal is only in it for Grand Slam titles, at this stage. But he is likely to design his schedule around the French Open.

With the elite ranks back at full strength and legitimate new major contenders emerging, it's hard to see Federer and Nadal repeating their exploits in 2018.

Murray will struggle

Andy Murray is at a critical crossroads. Years of effort and frustration finally bore fruit in his remarkable 2016 season, when he locked down the year-end No.1 ranking in the final match of the ATP year. It had the feel of a career-capping performance.

EDITOR'S PICKS

Congrats, Grigor Dimitrov, but what's next?
Yes, it might be unfair to ask about Grigor Dimitrov's future instead of celebrating his ATP World Tour Finals championship. But we've waited for so long for him to break through that we can't help ourselves.

Roger Federer did what?!?! The numbers behind his stellar season
Yes, Roger Federer's season came to a stunning end Saturday at the ATP World Tour Finals, but this was an otherwise sensational year. Don't believe us? Just check on these stats.
Also, Murray is a two-time Wimbledon champ and two-time Olympic singles gold medalist. The 30-year-old Scot already is on the short list for being the greatest British athlete of all time. All of which suggests he might be done with the heavy lifting in his career. Another hint: He recently parted ways with the coach who engineered his greatest triumphs, Ivan Lendl.

Murray always has been slow to find his A-game.

"Murray finds his form by playing lots of matches," ESPN's Brad Gilbert, Murray's former coach, told ESPN.com. "It may take him some time to really start clicking."

That's if he starts clicking at all.

Disrupters will threaten the status quo

Goffin, who turns 27 in December, might not have enough weapons to win a Grand Slam in 2018, but he has shown that he can disrupt any draw. He and a number of other players in their mid-20s will make life very difficult for the marquee names, especially if the Grand Slams decide to cut back to 16 seeds (from the present 32).

Dimitrov, Jack Sock, Dominic Thiem, Kei Nishikori, Milos Raonic and others have all been held back by the Big Four and Stan Wawrinka. All of them have improved while patiently awaiting their turn.

Nishikori and Raonic, both Grand Slam finalists, missed a lot of tennis at the end of the year due to injuries. Expect both of them to mount a big push. Thiem, Alexander Zverev, Lucas Pouille and Nick Kyrgios are all 24 or under.

Djokovic will earn back the No. 1 ranking

If the Grand Slam titles are distributed among three or more players, consistency will be the key to becoming No. 1. Novak Djokovic, who's 30, knows what that takes. He might not even have to hit the stratospheric level of play that he tapped into in 2015 in order to fight back to the top.


Djokovic pulled the plug on 2017 during Wimbledon and ended the season at No. 12. He was mired in a slump and suffering from an elbow injury. It was the culmination of a period when he struggled with personal and motivational issues, as well as athletic setbacks. Djokovic will get plenty of help from someone who knows what he has been going through -- his coach and friend Andre Agassi.

Zverev will crack the Grand Slam code

OK, it's ridiculous to criticize a 20-year-old who already is ranked No. 4 in the world and has won two Masters events (Rome and Montreal) with final-round wins over Djokovic and Federer. But Zverev had trouble hitting the high notes at the majors. His fourth-round loss at Wimbledon was his best effort; he lost in the first round at the French Open and won just one match while seeded No. 4 at the US Open.

You can bet Zverev and his team are disappointed and looking at the upcoming year's schedule with different perspectives. His rate of progress suggests that 2018 will be his Grand Slam breakthrough year.