Christopher Eubanks believes tennis legend Rafael Nadal should be given a top 16 seeding for the 2024 Roland Garros despite his current ranking.
The American feels that the 22-time Grand Slam champion must be separated from the top 16 players while claiming that it would be difficult to put him in the top 8 eight seed bracket considering the form of other players this season.
Nadal is currently 644th in the world because of the protected rankings, although he has improved it to 511th in the live ATP rankings after making it to the R2 of Barcelona Open earlier this week.
The legendary Mallorcan will not be a seed at the Roland Garros for the first time in his career if he appears at the 2024 edition of the Parisian slam. Nadal has won an astonishing 14 French Open titles and holds a staggering 112-3 win record from his previous 18 appearances at the prestigious clay tourney.
The prospect of Nadal being unseeded at the French Open makes it thrilling given he could face the big guns like Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz or Jannik Sinner in the opening rounds.
Talking to Tennis Channel, Eubanks said that Nadal should be handed a top 16 spot at French Open because of his past heroics at the clay slam.
“I would put him in top 16 for sure. You’ve got to space him out against the top 16 guys. If you’re going to put him 25, you might as well leave him unseeded,” said the world No. 44.
“He’s got to be inside the top 16. Off the top of my head, it could be a bit tough to go top eight considering the form of other players.
“It will be tough to take one of those guys out of the top eight. That’s why I am kind of going top eight, top 16, and 32. So I think top 16 is a pretty safe bet.
“You could make him a ninth or tenth seed. But at that point, I feel if he is not top eight, he might as well be top 16. It doesn’t really make much difference being 10, 12 or 13.”
Nadal made another comeback after over 3 months because of an injury at the Barcelona Open after missing the entire 2023 season because of the hip flexor he injured at Melbourne Park. On his return the former World No. 1 defeated Flavio Cobolli in the opening round before getting knocked out by Aussie Alex de Minaur in the R32.
The 22-time major champion has revealed 2024 will likely be his last season on the tour. Nadal will next play in home at the Madrid Open.