Facing the ‘King of Clay’ in his own Kingdom is a kind of challenge in itself. That’s something not for the faint-hearted and surely, the world’s number 4, Alexander Zverev will be more than ready before facing Rafael Nadal at the popcorn first-round clash at Roland Garros on Sunday (May 26). Ranked number 276 in the world, Rafa is unseeded at the French Open for the very first time in his career. He has struggled a bit with injuries over the past 18 months and hasn’t yet found back his A-game in what seems to possibly be his last season on Tour. But former ATP player, Sam Querrey has raised a stern warning to Zverev before taking on the court against the Spaniard, who has a 40% lead in their H2H.

Sam Querrey, in a recent appearance on the Racquet’s Rennae Stubbs Tennis podcast, discussed the upcoming French Open.R1.  While acknowledging Rafael Nadal’s strength, he mentioned their two past clay-court encounters, which both resulted in Querrey’s defeat. Querrey even added an intriguing detail about Nadal’s pre-match ritual of flipping a coin for his opponent. “Right from the get-go, you’ve seen it, when you’re flipping the coin, and you’re up at the net with the referee, he’s bouncing up and down. He’s looking at you.” 

He elaborated on the psychological impact of facing Nadal, stating, “You’re intimidated, right off the bat.” By mentioning “intimidated,” Querrey suggests Nadal’s aura disrupts your focus. Can even do so for Zverev. Sam further highlighted the immense mental pressure Nadal exerts on his opponents. “You know that when you’re up 40 Love, he’s gonna make you earn that next point to win the game. And you’re gonna go out there, and you’re gonna battle for three, four or five hours.“

Sam Querrey strongly believes this is what earned Rafa his astonishing 14 French Open titles. “And even though this is his last event, most likely and he’s not playing great. As an opponent, you don’t want to play with in a French Open, I don’t know how you feel. But if I’m one of the other 127 guys in the draw. I the one person I don’t want to see is Rafael Nadal,” Querrey. The 36-year-old American former tennis star doesn’t see Zverev as one of the top 3 favorites at the French Open. But he has time and again reminded him that a flame burns the brightest just before it goes out.

Rafael Nadal has mentioned several times that the French Open is the most important tournament of his tennis career. And why not? He has won 14 titles here and has a remarkable 112-3 (97.4%) win-loss record at the French Open. Although Zverev won the Italian Open title last week, Nadal currently leads the H2H against the German by a 7-3 margin. So, this will surely not be a strolling in the park for either of them. They will be up for some stiff challenges in Paris in just a couple of days. Here’s what the tennis world has to say about this intriguing contest.

Novak Djokovic heaped praise on Alexander Zverev for his incredible form with a tiny bit of caution ahead of Roland Garros

Earlier French Open tournament director Amelie Mauresmo reflected on her thoughts on this epic faceoff in the first round of the tournament. She said, “It’s coming a little early in the tournament surely. This is good news for neither of them.” Surely fans would want Rafael Nadal to make a deeper run in what’s going to be possibly his last appearance at his favorite Grand Slam event. But it’s what it is, and we have to now move on with it.

However, Novak Djokovic seemed to be very much excited about this nail-biting contest. He said, “Yes, I’ve seen it. Total spectacle. I’m excited to see that match, it will be a very interesting match. Zverev is in great shape, having won in Rome. On the court at Roland Garros, he is not the same Rafa we are facing. It’s Roland Garros, so we’ll see what happens,” during an interview with Punto de Break. 

Earlier Zverev said that he strongly believed he could’ve done quite better at the 2022 French Open had he not injured his ankle. Can he create that upsetting moment this time at the French Open or does Rafael Nadal has still a lot of gas left in the tank?