Gael Monfils: I have known Rafael Nadal since he was very young

France's Gael Monfils says Rafael Nadal doesn't impress him as much as he impresses others because he has known the Spaniard since they were kids and he expected from him to become a great player. 

Nadal, 33, has lived up to the expectation put on him as he is the second on the all-time Grand Slam record list with 19 Majors captured and one of the greatest to ever play the game. 

"Nadal, I have known him since he was very young. So he impresses me less than he impresses others," Monfils said, as revealed by Quentin Moynet of L'Equipe.

"Nadal, je le connais depuis qu'il est tout petit. Alors il m'impressionne moins qu'il n'impressionne les autres" https://t.co/r3MRgj22wc

— Quentin Moynet (@QuentinMoynet) April 16, 2020

Monfils, 33, and world No. 2 Nadal have clashed 16 times so far and the Frenchman hasn't had lots of success against the Spaniard. 

Nadal, a former world No. 2, has won the last six meetings against world No. 9 Monfils as he owns a dominant 14-2 head-to-head record against the Frenchman. 

Former world No. 6 Monfils hasn't won a match against Nadal in eight years as his last victory against the Spaniard came at the Qatar Open in Doha, in 2012.

The last meeting between the two came at the Madrid Masters in 2018, when the Spaniard beat the Frenchman to reach the round-of-16.

Monfils and Nadal were set to meet in the Montreal Masters semifinal last year but the match never happened as the Frenchman was forced to give a walkover to the Spaniard.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2KfdtS9