Does Nadal Worry About The French Open Draw?

As I write this, Rafael Nadal is about to close out his first round match in the 2008 French Open.

The real drama of the tournament so far was the release of the draw late last week.
Everybody wanted to know what half of the draw Novak Djokovic was going to be in.

And, as anybody who has looked at the draw knows, Roger Federer is smiling. The question is does Nadal even care?

Federer is smiling because he should cruise into the semifinals where he should meet either Nikolay Davydenko or David Ferrer.

Federer's record against Davydenko is a pristine 12-0 including 3 wins on clay.

Against Ferrer, Federer is 8-0 with 3 wins on clay.

I would say not much to worry about if I'm Federer.

Nadal on the other hand should have to play David Nalbandian in the quarters and Djokovic in the semis.

Nadal is 0-2 against Nalbandian --both on hard courts. And, Nalbandian has crushed him, not having lost a single set!

Against Djokovic, Nadal is 7-3 and 4-0 on clay.

Of course, this begs the question-- does Nadal worry about anybody on clay?

I suspect he would have preferred it Djokovic had ended up in the Federer half of the draw. Whoever plays Djokovic is going to have to expend tremendous energy and this could affect what's left for the final.

Let the games begin.
Until next time,

Glenn Sheiner M.D. - author of Insider Tennis Strategies Great Tennis Strategies To Win More Tennis Matches guaranteed to make you a smarter tennis player and take your tennis to the next level. Also, check out the world's top tennis humor screensaver
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