Why 2017 Will Be a Turnaround Season for Rafael Nadal

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Watching Rafael Nadal the past few years served as a sobering reminder that eventually even the greats break down. Nearly three years removed from his last Grand Slam victory, the narrative shifted from whether he’d break Roger Federer’s record to if he’d ever win another one.

Slowed by a variety of injuries, struggles with his confidence and the dominance of his Big Four brethren Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray, Nadal’s last two seasons raised a ton of questions about how much he has left in the tank.

He showed flashes of his old self during the 2016 clay-court swing, capturing Monte Carlo title in Monaca and the Barcelona Open crown in Spain, but a left-wrist problem curtailed that progress, forcing him to withdraw from the French Open and skip Wimbledon. The injury plagued Nadal the rest of his season, which he ended in mid-October.

As he approaches his 31st birthday, Nadal becomes further removed from his glory days. Considering the large gap between his last notable triumph and now, it’s become second nature to temper expectations for the Spaniard. 

In an interview with Sport360’s Reem Abulleil, retired player Pat Cash expressed concerns about the state of Nadal’s game, pinpointing inconsistent depth of shot and a weakened serve as factors holding him back.

“He needs to be able to push his opponents back and then finish the point off,” Cash said. “You can’t push them back if the ball is just dropping in the middle of the court. So that’s the number one thing for me. And his serve, he needs to fix that up a little bit.”

Those are correctable issues. Granted, he’s been trying to solve them for a while, and his wrist injury last year made it tougher to play the style he wanted. 

Sidelined this fall, Nadal had the chance to let his ailing body heal. During that time off, he also decided to add another …

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