I think Nadal will still be a major threat in the early part of the season when he is fresh and
fit. His skills, experience and his mentality will be able to compensate a bit for his fitness.
His main threat over a 5 set match is going to be the top experienced guys, Djokovic obviously,
Zverev and Medvedev and Alcaraz I suppose.
Obviously, Rafael Nadal is not expected to be eliminated early on. He is still a very capable player. People are saying that he is not eligible to win the title. Despite that, he is not bad enough to be eliminated from the tournament in the first round.
I think the five-set matches are going to be a treat for him alone because I don’t think he still has that type of stamina right now. As he gets older, it is also likely that his stamina will decrease as well. My opinion is that he is not winning. But he should be able to go far in this tournament.
I would think the opposite, I think a 5 set match suits him better because of his other strengths,
Skill and mentality or mental strength.
In a three set match if a player gets the better of you in the first two sets, it's over. In a five setter
you can go behind in the first two sets and still win the match.
I have seen some younger players with less experience go ahead in grand slams but don't have
the mental strength to finish the match