Nadal’s trial by fire in Rome against an unexpected and unprecedented opponent

“It’s time to push to get rid of the fear of breaking. I have to force and if I break then I break” Rafa Nadal will face the Masters 1000 in Rome aware that this is the last test before the greatest challenge of this stage of the season: Roland Garros.

The Balearic player suffered greatly while beating Belgian Zizou Bergs on his debut.whom he defeated 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 after a tense battle of almost three hours in which he was forced to close to his best level to return.

“I see it as something very positive. Even if I didn’t play well, which was a little surprising for me, on the other hand it’s not surprising because I haven’t played for almost two years.” I have to admit that my levels are a little more irregular. Everything is not the same as before, everything was very stable.“, he said at a press conference.

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This Saturday will be his first big test of the season. He compares himself to a top 10 player like Hubert Hurkacz. Pole, number nine in the world and seventh seed.makes his debut at the Italian tournament after a somewhat irregular start to the clay-court season.

Having won the first clay title of his career in Estoril, Hurkacz was unable to advance beyond the 1/8 finals. at the Masters 1000 tournament in Monte Carlo and Madrid, where he lost in two sets to players of the same level and rating, Casper Ruud (6-4, 6-2) and Taylor Fritz (7-6, 6-4).

Surprisingly, this will be the first confrontation between both. Despite being among the elite for many years, Nadal and Hurkacz have never seen each other in official matches, adding another point of uncertainty to a match that should serve to gauge the true level of the former world number one in his attempt return to the tennis elite again.