Rafael Nadal: Glaring Signs Rafa Will Have a Disastrous 2012

At the age of 25, it would seem as though 10-time Grand Slam winner and world No. 2 Rafael Nadal has plenty left in the tank. When you consider his injury history, however, there is a distinct possibility that 2012 may not be kind to Rafa.

Nadal has cruised through the first two rounds of the Australian Open in straight sets and hasn't really been tested, so trouble on the horizon isn't apparent at the moment. Nadal is currently dealing with a twisted knee ligament, though, making further injury a real possibility.

It seems as if Nadal is hampered by a new injury in every tournament, particularly Grand Slams. While he is pretty much always able to fight through them, an injury to a knee ligament could be significant. The best aspect of Rafa's game is his ability to move across the court and get to tough shots, so this ailment could be debilitating.

Once Nadal gets deeper into the Australian Open that injury will become much more apparent, since he will face much stiffer competition. It's certainly a possibility that Nadal is playing up his injury a little bit, but he has no reason to publicize his injury if it isn't legitimate.

Novak Djokovic may be the No. 1 player currently, but there is no question that Nadal has the ability to compete with him when healthy. Knee injuries are nothing to mess around with, and with Rafa's all-out style of play, he is risking further injury every time he steps on the court.

Even at full strength Nadal has an incredible amount of competition from the likes of Djokovic, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and many of the mid-tier players who are perfectly capable of beating the top dogs. To compete on one good knee, however, makes things that much more difficult.

Nadal has continually been able to fight through the pain and excel in big moments, but eventually you have to believe that these mounting injuries will catch up with him. Perhaps it won't happen immediately in the Australian Open, but the probability of him breaking down at some point over the course of a long season is high.

Rafa continues to defy the odds in terms of avoiding long layoffs from his injuries, but he's playing with fire at this point. It's possible that Nadal is still the most talented player on tour, but unless he's able to shake this knee ligament issue, 2012 will be a difficult year.