World No 4 Casper Ruud, who lost to Nadal in the Roland Garros final last year, said he would not be shocked to see the 36-year-old lift the trophy once again.

"It wouldn't surprise me because he'll probably use these weeks and these months, as he's preparing for exactly Roland Garros," Ruud told Eurosport as part of the Ruud Talk series.

"It doesn't matter if he loses in Monte Carlo or Rome or Madrid. The only thing that's probably on his mind these days is just to be fit, be healthy and be ready for Roland Garros."

Novak Djokovic succeeded Nadal as Australian Open champion and also drew level with his great rival on 22 majors.

The Serb, who turns 36 in May, has shown few signs of slowing down but also missed Indian Wells after he was denied entry into the US because of his Covid-19 vaccination status.

A two-time champion at Roland Garros, Djokovic will be looking to move out on his own as the most successful men's Grand Slam champion in history when the action gets underway in Paris at the end of May.

But for former US Open champion Dominic Thiem, even a Djokovic firing on all cylinders would be an underdog against Nadal on the red clay of Roland Garros.

"For the whole tennis world it would be nice to see one last showdown at Roland Garros," Thiem said, adding that Djokovic would be favourite to win the remaining Grand Slams this year.

"The only tournament is Roland Garros: if Rafa is fit there, it's exactly the opposite. He's the man to beat when he won the tournament 14 times, it's crazy."