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Madrid Open 2013: What We Learned on Road to French Open
Published: May 12, 2013
At the same time, the clay surface of Madrid taught us to never underestimate lesser-known players.
Some of the top-ranked players found that out, as their early departures helped paved an easier path for the victors.
With Italy up next and the Roland Garros on the horizon, let's check out what Madrid revealed this season.
Nadal Getting Back to His Usual Clay Form
Although Rafael Nadal had finished runner-up on clay twice this season before Madrid, he wasn't playing with his usual tenacity.
In early February, he fell to Horacio Zeballos in Chile and then to Novak Djokovic in Monaco. That said, reaching the finals in every tournament since his season began has served as a stepping stone thus far.
It ultimately led to crushing the competition in Madrid, because Nadal only dropped one set in five matches. Despite not facing Roger Federer, Andy Murray or Djokovic, Nadal also was not among the top contenders that unexpectedly fell to lower or unseeded players.
Using the clay surface of Italy to gain further preparation for France, Nadal will be expected to take Roland Garros. After all, he has won it seven of the previous eight years.
Top Players Must Quickly Rebound
The most disappointing aspect of the 2013 Madrid Open was the early exits of Federer, Djokovic and Murray. In short, the lesser-established players pulling the upsets prevented some previews of huge matchups leading into Italy and France.
At the same time, the upsets also gave us a transparent glimpse at those top-ranked players.
How will each respond at the Italian Open? Will they crumble early once again or make a deep run? And should they make it to the quarterfinals or further, can anyone fend off Nadal?
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis
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