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Rafael Nadal has talked about the possibility of completing what is becoming known as the ‘Rafa Slam’. If Nadal wins the 2011 Australian Open which starts in just a few weeks he will be holding every Grand Slam title having claimed Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the US Open this year. If he manages to complete this ‘slam’ he will be the first male since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all of the titles at the same time.
Laver remains the only player to have claimed a calender year Slam (twice) in the Open Era.
“It’s bit scary to think that if I win in Australia I would close the circle of four Grand Slams in a row. But what’s also scary is that I have already won three straight. For me it’s a big dream to get there and try to play well and compete to reach the finals. Once you’ve gone that far, anything can happen. This is a unique opportunity. I’ll try to be well-prepared and try to play well every day.”
It will be impressive if Nadal manages to reclaim the Australian Open title. When he won it in 2009 talk swirled that he could complete a calender year Slam having always dominated Roland Garros and having proved himself the year before at Wimbledon. You have to wonder how much good fortune and form the world number one will need because rival Roger Federer will certainly be trying his best to stop Nadal from achieving what he hasn’t been able to.
Then again we’ve all seen how dominant Nadal can be when he really wants something… just look at this years Wimbledon and US Open.
