Rafael Nadal fell to Fernando Verdasco in the first round of Australian Open 2016. That did show the world that he is no longer a threat to the serious players, but Novak Djokovic still gives him the benefit of the doubt.
The world number one has been known to say that "Nadal Is Still The King Of Clay," according to a headline that Tennis World ran. But seeing how Rafa floundered in the first round of Australian Open, not many players will take Novak's comment seriously at this point.
But that doesn't mean that Rafael Nadal is ready to pull out any time soon. He made sure that he was part of the debate of the history's greatest players by saying that Novak Djokovic may be a better player than Roger Federer ever was. By doing this, Rafa took some pressure off from losing yet another game to the world number 1 as he steadily climbs ranking.
"I played against a player who did everything perfect. I know nobody playing tennis like this ever," he said according to For The Win. "Since I know this sport, I never saw somebody playing at this level. When I say perfect, it's not one thing in particular. It's everything. If not, it's not perfect."
Ever since his great fall, Rafael Nadal is now know for moving quickly onto the next thing. He tweeted that he is more than excited to be back in Sydney to get away from yet another loss in the finals. He wrote in one of the Twitter posts, "Great to be back in Sydney. See you at #Fast4Tennis tonight. #ilovesydney"
Despite everything, the Spaniard is a happy man! Having celebrated the New Years Eve with his girlfriend Maria Francisca, he went on to win his first game in Abu Dhabi. He also made sure to keep his rival Novak Djokovic under his radar by challenging him to a round of beach tennis!
The former world number one looked happier than ever ringing in 2016 with his family and girlfriend Maria Francisca on Twitter. He captioned the picture, "Celebrando con la familia! Celebrating with the family! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! #2016."
Looked like neither Roger Federer nor Novak Djokovic was very much on his mind that night.
