Nadal will be a ‘real unknown’ on his clay-court return, says Tsonga

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga believes that Rafael Nadal will be somewhat of an unknown entity when the Spaniard makes his long-awaited return to tennis for the clay-court swing.

Nadal, now ranked world No. 652 after over a year out of action with injury, has hinted that he would like to return to the tour for the clay season, with the 2024 French Open on the horizon.

He is the record holder at Roland-Garros with 14 titles on the Parisian dirt, and the ‘King of Clay’ is keen to end his career on a high note – on his favoured surface.

The Spaniard returned to the tour at the beginning of the calendar year, but was knocked out in the quarter-finals of the Brisbane International by Jordan Thompson, and his injury worries forced him to withdraw from the Australian Open and Qatar Open.

Nadal then did not play at Indian Wells, releasing a statement that read: “I don’t find myself ready to play at the highest level at such an important event.

“It is not an easy decision, it’s a tough one as a matter of fact but I can’t lie to myself and lie to the thousands of fans. I will miss you all and I am sure the tournament will be a great success.”

Now, as Nadal prepares his comeback for the final chapter of his career, Tsonga, the former world No. 5, does not know how the 22-time Grand Slam champion’s return could go.

“The real unknown is what Rafa is capable of doing on clay,” Tsonga said to L’Equipe.

“Today, on a hard court, we know that he doesn’t move as well, that he’ll never perform as well as he did before.

“On clay today, there’s a real unknown. He had such a margin over the others. Will he be able to hold his own in a tough match today? That’s the real unknown.”

Nadal has won 63 titles on clay, and Tsonga, who reached the last four of the French Open, his home Grand Slam, on two occasions, insisted that the Spaniard had nothing to prove.

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“He’s got nothing left to prove. That’s over. He just wants to reassure himself, to say ‘okay, that’s it, I can go’,” the Frenchman said.

“He’s looking for validation so that he can leave. In truth, he’s been a shadow of his former self for quite a few months now.

“I think he just wants to prove it to himself, to say to himself now, ‘I’m safe to leave, I’m at peace’.”

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