Rafael Nadal's Early Struggles Give Hope to Rest of French Open Field

One bad match won't sink Rafael Nadal's chances of winning the 2013 French Open. 

The Spaniard is without argument the best player in the world on clay, yet Germany's Daniel Brands stole a set and nearly matched Nadal in the second before ultimately falling in four sets. 

Nadal found his stride midway through the match and won 4-6, 7(7)-6(4), 6-4, 6-3. 

This result won't affect Nadal's confidence, but it will embolden his future opponents.

Since coming back from a seven-month layoff while recovering from knee injuries, Nadal has looked unbeatable—especially on clay. Neo Sports Network noted that before the French Open began, Nadal had a record of 36-2 with six titles this season:

After Roger Federer got hammered in straight sets (6-1, 6-3) by Nadal at the Rome Masters, he told reporters Nadal "was too good for me," according to TennisWorldUSA.org. 

Nadal had as much momentum heading into the French Open as humanly possible.

Then, Brands—the No. 59-ranked player on the ATP Tour and a man who has never once reached a finals in any ATP tournament—was able to take Nadal to task in the first set and win a total of 19 games, according to ESPN Stats & Info:

Suddenly, Nadal looks beatable.

Suddenly, the "King of Clay" looks vulnerable. And just as surely as lions can smell weakness in an injured gazelle, so too do athletes sense potential weaknesses in their opponents. 

Again, it's important to point out Nadal won't be affected by this outcome. He's an absolute pro who is undoubtedly the world's best clay-court player, and you can be sure he isn't going to be terrified of bowing out early this year. 

That said, it will give his future opponents some mental ammunition, so to speak.

And they'll need it.

Nadal has won the men's finals at Roland Garros in seven of the past eight years. 

His opponents will need every edge they can get.

Nadal is still the champ until someone finally knocks him off his throne. But perhaps the champ has a chink in his armor. 

Next up is Martin Klizan of Slovakia—the No. 35-ranked player on the ATP Tour. Klizan has never gotten out of the second round at Roland Garros, and his only career victory came on a hard court. 

It should be an easy victory for Nadal, but it will be fun to see if Klizan can conjure up a bit of the same magic that was driving Brands in the first round and come away with a set—if not the match. 

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