Top seed and defending men’s champion Rafael Nadal is untroubled by his winless start to 2023, adamant he’s well-placed to win a third Australian Open crown.

Nadal, 36, has won just one match since the US Open, and had the rare experience of withdrawing from a major at Wimbledon when an abdominal injury forced him to pull out before last year’s semi-final against Nick Kyrgios.

The Spaniard, winner of 22 grand slam titles, is striving to join Ken Rosewall and Roger Federer as men’s major winners aged 36 or older.

“Well, it’s true that the last couple of months I was not able to play much tennis and at the beginning of the season I lost two matches in Sydney, but honestly, I am not unhappy with the preparation,” the world No.2 said in Melbourne on Tuesday.

Loading

“I need to win matches for sure. But the preparation is going quite well, practising a lot and I think I am in good shape.

“Then you need to demonstrate that in the matches, in the official tournaments.

“But I’m confident that if I am able to have this last week of positive practices, why not?”

Ultimate success at Melbourne Park has proved elusive for tennis great Nadal, with last year’s victory coming 13 years after his previous title down under achieved against Federer. From six Australian Open finals contested, Nadal has two titles. Untimely injuries and formidable opposition have cost him.