Toni Nadal has worked as a coach with his nephew since he was a teenager but has stepped down from the front-line, instead opting to work at their academy in Mallorca.

Carlos Moya and Francisco Roig will be Nadal’s main coaches instead, both of whom helped him bounce back from a wrist injury to win two Grand Slams in 2017 and finish the year as the oldest ever world No 1.

However, Toni believes Rafael has benefited from injuries to Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic, both of whom missed the whole second half of the season.

“This year has been it happens that Djokovic has not been at his best and Murray either,” Toni told Spanish newspaper ABC.

“And [Stan] Wawrinka, [Kei] Nishikori and [Milos] Raonic have also had problems.

“Next year it will be difficult to win many titles, although I hope Rafael continues to prove he is the best on the clay and win again Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Roland Garros."

Nadal’s main competition in 2017 came from a resurgent Roger Federer, who took the second half of 2016 off to deal with knee and back injuries.

The Swiss roared back to win the Australian Open and a record eighth Wimbledon title but could not overhaul Nadal at the top of the rankings.

Federer took his tally of Grand Slams to 19 and remains three clear of Nadal in the all-time list - but Toni doesn’t think their careers will end that way.

"I trust that Rafa will last long enough to beat Federer's record,” Toni added.