Seven-time Grand Slam champion Mats Wilander has advised World No. 1 Rafael Nadal to shun his passive approach and become more and more aggressive on the court in order to defend his French Open title in Paris.
The Spaniard opened his bid for a record-extending 11th Roland Garros crown with a straight-sets triumph against the Italian Simone Bolelli on Tuesday. However, the top seed wasn’t at his very best, surviving three set points before winning the topsy-turvy third set. The 31-year-old will face tougher opponents in the subsequent rounds and Wilander has warned Nadal against playing long matches to avoid fatigue early on in the tournament.
The 16-time Major winner has a clear path to the semis, but he will have to keep himself fresh especially for the battles with younger rivals like Alexander Zverev, insists Wilander.
“I think that it wasn’t that great, he was a little too passive but Simone Bolelli played an excellent match,” Wilander told Reuters.
“But I think Nadal knows how to win matches when he is too passive.
“He was expecting Bolelli to miss I think.
“Again, it’s about winning and he seems to be able to win when he’s too passive.
“He’s the greatest match player of all time on the day and he respects his opponents so much that it makes him nervous and tense and tight.
“But if he plays like in other matches it means he’s going to have long matches and I’m not sure long matches is a good thing for him.
“He needs to risk a little more and risk losing a set because it’s a long two weeks and he needs to be fresh because against (German Alexander) Zverev and these guys you need to be fresh.”
Nadal will square-off against Guido Pella for a spot in the third round on Thursday.
