Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal has won the French Open 10 times. In this picture, Spain's Rafael Nadal points between points against Italy's Simone Bolelli during their men's singles first round match on day three of the Roland Garros 2018 French Open tennis tournament in Paris, May 29, 2018. CHRISTOPHE SIMON/AFP/Getty Images

Rafael Nadal is the ultimate favorite to win the French Open for an unprecedented 11th time after dominating the clay court season yet again in 2018.

The Spaniard lost just once on the red dirt and it came in the quarter-finals of the Mutua Madrid Open at the hands of Dominic Thiem. It was his first loss on his favorite surface in 357 days with the previous one also coming against the same opponent at the Italian Open in 2017.

Nadal has won three titles on clay this season — the Monte Carlo Masters, the Barcelona Open and the Italian Open. He began his Roland Garros campaign with a straight-sets win over Simone Bolelli and it is unlikely that too many people will bet against him winning the title yet again.

The 31-year-old missed over two months of action after suffering a hip injury at the Australian Open in January. He only returned for the start of the clay court season at the Monte Carlo Masters.

Despite having not played for over two months, Nadal was immediately installed as the favorite going into the tournament in the Principality. The Spaniard is expected to win every clay court event he enters, but when asked if his dominance over the rest of the field and the expectations allow for complacency to rise — he dismissed the suggestion.

Nadal pointed to his multiple titles at various clay court events to prove that he is not complacent. He is aware that complacency and overconfidence will not help in his quest to win titles on a regular basis.

The 16-time men’s singles Grand Slam winner revealed that his respect for the sport and his opponents every time he steps on the court is the main reason for his on-court successes. Nadal never goes into the match thinking of just one outcome and he is ready to face he could end up on the wrong side of the result.

“Not gonna happen, and there is a proof that that's never happened, that I won 10 times here, 11 Monte-Carlo, 11 Barcelona, 8 Rome,” Nadal said talking about the tournaments he has dominated on his favorite surface, as quoted on Tennis World USA.

“If you get complacent or too confident with yourself, for sure that not gonna be happy. I was able to do all this result because I respect the sport, I respect every opponent, and I respect the competition every day," he said.

“That's the reason (why) I have success, is because I go every day on court knowing that I can win, that I can lose, and that's the sport. So anything can happen,” the 10-time French Open winner added.

Nadal progressed to the second round of the French Open with his win over Bolelli on Tuesday and will face Guido Pella for a place in the third round on Thursday.

RELATED STORIES