LONDON
\nRafa Nadal\u2019s absence from Indian Wells saw the 22-times Grand Slam champion slip out of the top 10 for the first time since 2005 on Monday but the Spaniard will still be the \u201cman to beat\u201d at the French Open if he can get back to full fitness.
\nNadal was forced to skip the Masters 1000 event in California, where he reached the final last year, as he continues his recovery from a hip issue that ended his Australian Open title defence in the second round in January.
\nUnable to defend the 600 points from Indian Wells resulted in Nadal dropping four places to 13th in the rankings, ending his record 912-week stay inside the top 10, which began when current number one Carlos Alcaroz was not even two years old. However, with Nadal preparing to return to action at the Monte Carlo Masters next month ahead of the French Open, which he has won 14 times in his career, his time outside the top 10 might be short.
\nWorld number four Casper Ruud, , who lost to Nadal in the Roland Garros final last year, said he would not be shocked to see the 36-year-old lift the trophy once again.
\n\u201cIt wouldn\u2019t surprise me because he\u2019ll probably use these weeks and these months, as he\u2019s preparing for exactly Roland Garros,\u201d Ruud told Eurosport as part of the \u2018Ruud Talk\u2019 series.
\n\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter if he loses in Monte Carlo or Rome or Madrid. The only thing that\u2019s probably on his mind these days is just to be fit, be healthy and be ready for Roland Garros.\u201d
\nTennis lost two of its greats when Serena Williams and Roger Federer bowed out of the sport last year, but Nadal and rival Novak Djokovic are still soldiering on. Djokovic, who turns 36 in May, has shown few signs of slowing down and drew level with Nadal on 22 Grand Slams by winning the Australian Open.
\n\u201cFor the whole tennis world it would be nice to see one last showdown at Roland Garros,\u201d former U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem said, adding that Djokovic would be favourite to win the remaining Grand Slams this year.
\n\u201cThe only tournament is Roland Garros: if Rafa is fit there, it\u2019s exactly the opposite. He\u2019s the man to beat when he won the tournament 14 times, it\u2019s crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LONDON Rafa Nadal\u2019s absence from Indian Wells saw the 22-times Grand Slam champion slip out of the top 10 for the first time since 2005 on Monday but the Spaniard will still be the \u201cman to beat\u201d at the French Open if he can get back to full fitness. Nadal was forced to skip the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":320860,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-321049","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n