German ATP star Yannick Hanfmann has admitted that facing Rafael Nadal is the real scare and “toughest job in tennis” as he shared his experience of facing Spaniard on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Hanfmann played Nadal at the French Open back in 2019 with the German coming through qualifiers to secure a main draw entry. The lucky loser’s fate in the clay slam was decided by the clay court Maestro as he handed him a 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 defeat to eventually claim a record-extending 12th Roland Garros title.
Now ranked 53rd in the ATP ranks, Hanfmann reflected on the bludgeoning experience of facing Nadal who at the time had only two defeats on Philippe Chatrier at that time.
“I think to play Rafa on that court is probably the toughest job in tennis,” said the German, speaking to Clay Magazine.
“I felt weird when I saw I got Rafa in the first round. Because I played really well in qualifying and then the draw put [up] such a difficult challenge.
“It was, in one way an amazing match, an amazing experience. But on the other way I felt a little bit sad, because I knew most likely this was going to be the end.
“I didn’t feel great. Like, he made me just suffer. You know, he just plays such a different kind of ball to anyone else on tour. And especially on that court, on these conditions, it’s elevated by 10. And so it was tough to adjust to his game, so he gave me a good lesson.””
In recent months there has been plenty of discussion about how Nadal could fare at the tournament this year, given he will be 38 at the time of the competition this year.
The Mallorcan has won a staggering 14 of his 22 major crowns in Paris and is unquestionably the greatest clay-court player of all time, but his fitness woes remain a big question mark.
Nadal missed the majority of last season because of unhealed hip and only played 3 official tour matches this season, at the Brisbane International back in January.
The former world No. 1 has since withdrawn from the Australian Open Doha and Indian Wells among other events, with some concerned about whether he will be able to participate in the Parisian slam.
But Hanfmann, who reached the R2 at Roland Garros for the first time last season, thinks it would not be wise to discount Nadal just yet.
He added: “What I saw from him in Australia, he looked quite sharp on the practice court. He also looked good in the match. And then, of course, he had a setback with the injury.
“I don’t know what’s happening with him, how bad his body actually is. But, you know, what we’ve seen from him over the years is that you can never write him off.
“If he feels dangerous again, then I believe it. You have to consider Rafa a favourite, even though he might not be in his prime anymore. He’s still playing pretty good tennis.”