Madrid--Andy Murray insists it would be a mistake to write off Rafael Nadal as a claycourt force and expects the Spaniard to still be favourite for a 10th French Open.
World number three Murray stunned Nadal 6-3, 6-2 to win the Madrid Open on Sunday, his first Masters title on clay and a second claycourt title in a week.
It was also the Scot's first victory over the Spaniard on clay in seven attempts, but he believes Nadal will still be the man to beat come Roland Garros at the end of the month.
"I think there were periods of the match where he played like he usually does, but there were also periods where he made more mistakes," said Murray, who had never won a claycourt crown before his victory in Munich last Monday.
"On that court (in Paris) he has only ever lost one match, so when the French Open comes round he'll be one of the favourites. It is maybe closer than it's been in previous years, but I wouldn't write him off."
"He showed enough this week to suggest that with two good weeks of work and good results in Rome (at next week's Italian Open), he can go all the way at Roland Garros."
Sunday's defeat means Nadal will drop to seventh in the latest world rankings on Monday, the first time he has been out of the top five in 10 years.
The 14-time Grand Slam champion is also defending 600 ranking points in Rome having made last year's final.
He stressed his priority was not dropping further down the rankings which could seriously affect his seeding at Roland Garros.
"Nothing changes going from five to seven," he said.
AFP
