Nadal’s Coach Thinks This Year is Better Than Last Year

Rafael Nadal’s uncle, Toni, has admitted that he harbored doubts about whether the new world No.1 and Roland Garros champion could emerge from a dark period in his life that saw him surrender his French Open supremacy and fail to defend his Wimbledon title during a 2009 hindered by injury and his parents divorce.

"Last year was a very difficult one and I remember the final tournament in London was very tough (where Nadal failed to win a set in any of his three matches)," said Toni after the Roland Garros final. "I did have some doubts. I believed in the work we were doing but I started to think maybe it would not be enough. When we finished 2009, we finished with problems which wasn't good.

(Then in 2010) he was good in the first tournament in Doha but he had problems again in Australia. In the big moments I thought he wasn't so good with his mentality. He was making mistakes on break points and big points which was not like him. But in Monte Carlo he played really good. All his parts came together."