Can he create the exploit? After his two resounding victories against the No. 10 seed, the Pole Hubert Hurkacz, then at the end of the night against the Russian Aslan Karatsev, Adrian Mannarino saw an almost impregnable mountain stand in his way. On the night of Saturday to Sunday, the French outsider will be opposed in the round of 16 of the Australian Open to the legendary Rafael Nadal in search of a 21st Grand Slam title, a record.
The two tennis players have already met twice and during the last confrontation at Bercy in 2019, Mannarino had jostled the Iberian to finally lose 7-5, 6-4. But it is clear that this time, the exceptional circumstances give this third opposition the appearance of a high point in the career of the 69th in the world ranking.
Nadal’s comeback
After a left foot injury which forced him to end his season in September, Rafael Nadal is making a comeback at the Australian Open, the only Grand Slam tournament he has only won. once, in 2009. His impeccable start to the game and his cannonball end to the match against the Russian Karen Khachanov in the third round perfectly illustrate his regained form, he who had been eliminated in the semi-finals of Roland-Garros and had to give up Wimbledon and therefore the US Open last year. “My whole team and I had a lot of doubts, not just about the Australian Open, but about returning to the circuit, he admitted in a press conference after his qualification for the eighth tournament final. A month and a half ago, I could only train for half an hour a day. »
Not sure therefore that Mannarino can count on a possible factor of physical freshness to get the upper hand on the native of Mallorca, especially since the two players are only two years apart. On the other hand, they have notable differences in style despite being both left-handed and playing their backhands with two hands. Rafael Nadal is indeed renowned for his powerful game, a characteristic that particularly suits the Frenchman. The latter holds a racquet whose string tension is particularly low, which limits the force of his strokes for the sake of control and precision. Adrian Mannarino therefore appreciates the defensive strategy and relies willingly on the blows of his opponent. “I’m not going to serve at 220 km/h or do a lot of winning shots,” he said after his victory against Karatsev. I’m the guy who puts the ball in the court again, that’s what I know how to do. »
Never two without three ?
Taking a closer look at the high-level career of the Val-d’Oise native, it’s almost amusing to note that the only two times he reached the knockout stages of a Grand Slam tournament, he was eliminated. by the two great rivals of his next opponent: Novak Djokovic in 2017 and Roger Federer in 2018, each time on the lawn of Wimbledon. Some will read in this round of 16 in Melbourne the famous adage “never two without three”, others will see it as an opportunity to ward off fate by winning a prestigious victory against one of the three monsters of the discipline.
