Rafael Nadal is riding high early on in his 2022 season. The 20-time Grand Slam champion added another trophy to his shelf after winning the Melbourne Summer Set.

The Spanish legend has finally returned to the official ATP tour. Thus, he has begun his 2022 campaign in Melbourne with the Summer Set. It is a key warmup tournament that precedes the Australian Open.

Finally, his fans have reason to rejoice, as the Spaniard bagged the tournament in Melbourne. He defeated American Maxime Cressy in straight sets.

Rafael Nadal corrects a journalist over his Australian Open history

During his presser after this match against Maxime Cressy which he won 7-6(6), 6-3, a journalist asked Rafa how he felt because he hadn’t been able to get to the semi-finals of the Australian Open since 2009 when he won the Grand Slam.

Furthermore, he asked Nadal if there was something particularly tough about the major in particular for the Spaniard. Of course, Rafael Nadal looked visibly taken aback at hearing the question, as the statistic itself was wrong.

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“I am very sorry to tell you,” Rafa chuckled as he responded mentioning that he doesn’t really want to (correct him), Rafa smiled as he explained. Not only had he been in the semi-final of 2012, but he had gone on to the final round (where Novak Djokovic defeated him).

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Moreover, he had also been in the final round of the Australian Open in 2014 and 2017, where he met Stan Wawrinka and Roger Federer respectively. However, Rafa kept things light as he laughed while narrating his finalist runs at the Aussie Open.

Clearly, the champion keeps his memory sharp, especially when it comes to his own campaigns and title runs.

Rafa isn’t where he wants to be, but he’s happy

As he secured his first tournament of the season, a journalist asked him if the Spaniard was exactly where he wanted to be, in terms of his preparation for the Australian Open.

To this, Rafa replied that where he would like to be is “being hundred percent healthy from last year.”  He said that his ideal position would be a state of health where he wouldn’t have to take months off from the tour like 2021.

Moreover, he also expressed regret over coming back far behind the other players due to his health. Thus, he admitted that he isn’t exactly where he wants to be.

Nevertheless, Rafael Nadal expressed that he is quite happy with winning the tournament. He stated that he feels ready for the Australian Open next week.

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