Rafael Nadal: Breaking Down Rafa's Chances in Upcoming 2012 Majors

Rafael Nadal came up short in the Australian Open, but he proved he isn't ready to fully concede to Novak Djokovic just yet. 

Over five hours of back-and-forth tennis will do that. 

Still though, Djoker is still clearly No. 1 in the world and has Rafa's number. He's now won seven straight matches against the Spaniard. 

So does Nadal stand any chance to win a Major this year?

Let's dive a little deeper.

French Open

Could the King of Clay possibly fall to Djokovic or Federer on a surface he has dominated throughout his career? Is there any way Nadal doesn't win the French Open? 

As long as he doesn't match up with Robin Soderling, Nadal should be fine.

OK, Soderling won't up-end Nadal in France, but he is the only one to ever beat Rafa there, which speaks to Nadal's dominance.

He is an unbelievable  45-1 in his career at the French Open. He has won the tourney six times in seven tries. With that being said, Djokovic beat Nadal in Rome and Madrid—both clay courts—last year, so the tide might just be turning.

Still, Nadal is the easy favorite to win the French.

Wimbledon

Wimbledon is Nadal's second best major, as he has reached the final in five of the last six years and came out as the winner in 2008 and 2010. 

Nadal lost in the final last year against Djokovic, but the Serb has been fairly inconsistent at Wimbledon in his career.

I give the small advantage to Nadal, despite last year's results. 

US Open

Nadal clearly doesn't like America. The end.

OK, not really, but seriously.

Nadal has made it to the finals the past two years and won in 2010. Fine, but it's actually been his worst tournament—he's "only" won 80 percent of his matches there. 

Djokovic, meanwhile, appears to have taken over as the current King of the Hard Court, so I'll give him the advantage during the year's last Grand Slam.