"I would not be surprised" - Stefanos Tsitsipas makes bold prediction about Rafael Nadal making Barcelona Open final on his comeback
Stefanos Tsitsipas pegged Rafael Nadal as among the favorites to reach the final at the 2024 Barcelona Open.
Tsitsipas recaptured his magic on the clay courts after winning his third title in four years at the Masters-1000 tournament in Monte-Carlo. The Greek will get little to no rest time as he is scheduled to play in the Barcelona Open, with his opening match at the tournament set for Tuesday, April 16.
After his triumph in Monte-Carlo, Tsitsipas was asked about Rafael Nadal and his impending return to the ATP Tour at the Barcelona Open.
Stefanos Tsitsipas praised Nadal's prowess on the clay court and is wary of the challenge he poses in Barcelona. The Greek opined that it does not matter that the 23-time Grand Slam champion has not played tennis for a while. He even pegged Nadal to reach the final at the ATP 500 tournament, which he has won a record 12 times.
"Well, I would say that Rafa, regardless of whether he hasn't played at all or if that's his first tournament, we all know what Rafa is capable of and how quickly he can adjust to one of his favorite surfaces, which is a clay court. I would not be surprised if we saw Rafa be in the finals of Barcelona, because that is something that he has done over and over again for years and years and years," Tsitsipas said in his press conference at Monte-Carlo Masters.
"What he does have is this competitiveness and this fierce tennis when he gets into the momentum that sometimes feels like on the outside perspective like unstoppable," he continued.
Nadal was out of action for nearly a year due to injury before making a comeback to tennis at the Brisbane International in January 2024.
Unfortunately, the Spaniard picked up another injury in Brisbane, which has kept him out of action till now. After multiple withdrawals at the Indian Wells Masters and Monte-Carlo Masters, he is finally set to return to tennis in Barcelona. The 37-year-old is using protected ranking to enter the main draw and will face Flavio Cobolli in the opening round on April 16.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, on the other hand, will come to Barcelona in the best form he has been in over a year. The Greek bettered Casper Ruud in straight sets to win his third Monte-Carlo Masters title on April 14 and defeated reigning Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner en route to the championship.
Tsitsipas is seeded No. 5 at the 2024 Barcelona Open and faces either Pavel Kotov or Sebastian Ofner in the second round after a first-round bye. The 26-year-old is a three-time runner-up at the tournament.
Rafael Nadal dealt a tough draw at Barcelona Open 2024
While Stefanos Tsitsipas expects Rafael Nadal to exceed expectations at the 2024 Barcelona Open, it would be a mighty task for the Spanish legend to string together consecutive wins despite his illustrious history at the tournament. Young Italian Flavio Cobolli would be an interesting challenge for Nadal in his first match since January 5.
If he manages to beat Cobolli, Nadal will face No. 5 seed and firebrand Australian Alex de Minaur in the second round and is projected to come up against No. 16 seed Arthur Fils, No. 6 seed Ugo Humbert, and No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas en route to the final.
The former World No. 1 would look back at his near-perfect record on the clay court of Barcelona as inspiration this year. He has a 66-4 win-loss record at the tournament and won nine of his 12 titles in the Catalan city without even dropping a set.