Rankings be damned. Rafael Nadal has clearly shown he is one of the two best players in tennis this year by reaching his 7th consecutive final and winning his fifth title. In the Madrid Masters, he eased his way past Stanislas Wawrinka in straight sets to claim his 23rd Masters 1000 title. So far this year, only Novak Djokovic with his Australian Open title, has won more points than Rafa. Nadal, however, has a tour-leading 5 titles (4 of them being on clay). For someone who was out for 7 months due to a knee injury, his successful return to tennis has been truly incredible.
It's quite unfortunate that Rafa will most likely go into the French Open seeded number 5, behind Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, David Ferrer, and Roger Federer. I was hoping that the French Open would consider seeding him higher (at least 4th) despite his #5 ranking because (1) he has won more claycourt titles and matches this year than anyone else, and (2) he has won six more French Open finals than all other active male players combined! Still, it is the prerogative of Roland Garros to follow the official rankings when seeding people. In all honesty, the only person I'm worried about is Novak. Everyone else, I feel Nadal can take down. So hopefully the draws are kind to Rafa and he avoid meeeting Novak earlier than the finals.
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