Eight hundred thirty points separate Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal in the year-end no. 1 battle. Two Spaniards are the main favorites to finish the season at the top, with Nadal having to outplay the young gun in Paris and Turin if he wants to pass him.
Rafa will return to action at this week’s Paris Masters, not playing singles matches since the US Open and hoping for a strong finish. Still, the 22-time Major winner does not think about the ATP throne, saying he achieved the No.
1 honor long ago. Rafa has been the second-best player in 2022 behind Carlos Alcaraz, winning two Major titles and returning into the top-2 at 36.
Rafael Nadal will seek the Paris Masters title this week.
Nadal went 20-0 at the start of the season before fracturing his rib in Indian Wells.
He lost the final to Taylor Fritz and skipped Monte Carlo and Barcelona, his favorite events. The king of clay could have played better in Madrid and Rome after almost two months away from the court. Also, the foot pain was back to bother him ahead of Roland Garros.
Rafa needed injections ahead of every match and survived all the obstacles to secure his 22nd Major and the 14th in Paris. Nadal reached the Wimbledon semi-final but could not fight against Nick Kyrgios.The Spaniard revealed a seven-millimeter tear in his abdomen and left the tournament following an epic quarter-final victory over Taylor Fritz.
Nadal skipped the Canada Masters and suffered an early Cincinnati loss to Borna Coric. Rafa could not play at his best in New York, still feeling the pain and making an early exit to Frances Tiafoe in the fourth round. Nadal played alongside Roger Federer at the Laver Cup and went home the following day, eager to train and recover from an injury.
The Spaniard used the previous weeks to work on his game and get into good shape ahead of Paris and Turin, never winning these tournaments. “I do not fight to be No. 1 but to be competitive in every event I play. I will not chase that at this stage of my career. I had that goal in the past and was happy and proud when I achieved that for the first time in 2008,” Rafael Nadal said.