TENNIS NEWS ROUND-UP:AT BEST, Rafael Nadal will go into the defence of his Wimbledon title in 12 days' time with no grass-court match practice under his belt. At worst, the world number one may yet be forced to withdraw from the event because of his chronic knee problems.
The Spaniard has never been one for half measures, so it was entirely typical that he should come out yesterday and say that he will “give 200 per cent” to be ready for Wimbledon. He is desperate to defend the title he won so dramatically against Roger Federer last summer. As ever, though, the devil is in the detail and it made worrying reading yesterday when he said: “I will not go out and play, especially on the Wimbledon Centre Court, if I am not 100 per cent ready to play.”
Nadal broke his silence after two days of rigorous tests on his knees in Barcelona that revealed that the 23-year-old has “insertion tendinitis” in both kneecaps. “I have been playing with pain on my knees for some months now and I simply can’t go on like this,” he said. “The pain was limiting certain movements in my body, which affected me mentally as well.
“I have two difficult weeks ahead of me, especially because I won’t be doing what I like doing most, which is to play tennis, but I will be working on my recovery through physiotherapy treatments as well as recovery work on the specific muscular area.”
Nadal will travel to London next Tuesday, but his participation must still be in serious doubt. It is apparent now the condition had been affecting Nadal throughout the clay-court season, which culminated in his first defeat at the French Open, going out to the relatively unknown Swede, Robin Soderling, in the fourth round.
He won titles in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome, but even in the Italian capital the signs were there, in retrospect, that all was not well. He was soundly beaten by Federer in the final of the Madrid Masters and his uncle and coach, Toni Nadal, has admitted they had hoped his nephew’s knees would hold up until after Wimbledon, when he could rest. Were he unable to play, Federer could even regain the number one ranking by winning his sixth title and Andy Murray would be breathing down his neck at number two.
It may have cheered Nadal slightly to hear he will not be the only one going into Wimbledon cold after Federer yesterday withdrew from the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany, saying he was still “emotionally overwhelmed and exhausted” by his French Open victory. “I need to rest and recuperate,” he said.
Those close to Nadal say his main goal this year is to win the US Open for the first time, a feat that would see him emulate Federer’s full set of grand slam titles, but the former world number one Andy Roddick believes Nadal will be fit for Wimbledon. “I’ve had tendinitis for years and years and years and years,” Roddick said. “It’s kind of a fancy term for over-use. I don’t think that in my mind I ever thought that his Wimbledon defence was in jeopardy.
“Rafa has had knee tendinitis for a long time and he’s won grand slams while he’s had it. I’m certainly not going to underestimate Rafa. I think he’s going to be there, I think he’s going to be fine and I think he’s going to put forth all the effort he has.”
Announcing his withdrawal from the Halle tournament, Federer said yesterday: “I sincerely apologise to the tournament organisers, my competitors, and my fans in Germany. I only hope they will understand that I still feel emotionally overwhelmed and exhausted by the incredible events of the past few days.”
Meanwhile, former French Open champion Ana Ivanovic has cut ties with coach Craig Kardon after working with him for only four months. “I’d like to thank Craig for all his hard work,” Ivanovic said. “He’s a great guy and I enjoyed working with him.”
Her management company said she would be trained on a part-time basis by her sponsor’s elite coaching staff during the grasscourt season. The set-up includes Sven Groeneveld, who helped her during the 2008 season.
GuardianService
