IIt is dangerous to second guess what a tennis player needs to find success, especially when the player in question is a man who has multiple major titles under his belt.  But that has not stopped people from pondering whether or not Rafael Nadal could benefit from a new coach.  The Nadal camp has previously brushed off such suggestions, but as recently as this week, there appears to be a sliver of possibility that a new face could be added to Nadal's team.

The urge for a change to Nadal's team stems from the Spaniard's results this year.  While they have not been outright terrible, 2015 remains his worst season in a decade.  He has won just three lower-tier titles, and he failed to reach the semifinals at any of the four majors.  Furthermore, he has suffered a number of inexplicable early losses and has seen his ranking slide to No. 8.

To be fair to Nadal, the potential was always there for the beginning of this year to be rocky.  With his 2014 season cut short due to injuries and an appendectomy, he was unable to enter 2015 with a confident mindset.  Sadly for the nine-time Roland Garros Champion, the excusably lackluster results he endured at the start of the season had a detrimental snowball effect on his play in the months that followed, and he has never quite been able to consistently tap into his best form.  There is still time for him to salvage his 2015 and garner some confidence for 2016, but there is no question that Nadal has failed to replicate the kind of successful comeback that has been a trademark of his career.  

Nobody knows whether or not a new voice in his camp could have proven instrumental in helping Nadal pull off yet another successful comeback  There is no telling whether or not he can right the ship with the pieces that are already currently in place.  Yet for all of the unknowns, Nadal would be wise to consider adding a new coach to his team.  The Spaniard is older now, and his style of play was always going to be more difficult to maintain at a high level as he aged.  He needs to be looking to be more aggressive and shorten the points.  He has repeatedly shown that he has the skills to do that, and having a coach who can teach him how to utilize those skills more effectively and consistently could bring him more success and greater longevity in his career.  Additionally, if he opts to go the route of his fellow Big Four members, bringing on a new coach who is also a former top professional could help him mentally by being able to talk with someone who understands what it takes to reap the most rewards when transitioning from the prime of one's career to the latter stages.

Naturally, there is no guarantee that any new coach could bring Nadal out of his slump.  The success of a player/coach relationship hinges on many factors, and in the case of Nadal, two key factors concern the timing and the acceptance of a new coach.  Based on Toni Nadal's recent comments, they are only looking to bring on a new coach if Nadal continues to produce poor results at the start of 2016.  In essence, he is stating that only after they have exhausted all options and still failed to put Nadal satisfactorily back on the winning path are they ready to look for outside help.  It is hard to envision Nadal being at a lower point mentally than he would be in that scenario, making it a difficult time for anyone to transition in as his new coach.  Secondly, Toni Nadal has been with his nephew since Nadal was three, and there are many who believe it is Toni Nadal who pulls the strings in that camp.  Unless Toni Nadal voluntarily steps away, it is likely that any new coach would serve in more of an advisory role or as a co-coach, and while that arrangement works for some, it can be a disaster if coaches butt heads over approach and philosophy.  

Of course, there is always the chance that the search for a new coach for Nadal will never materialize.  Plenty could be gained by bringing in a fresh perspective, and in the grander scheme of things, it is arguably the smarter move.  But if Nadal is able to sneak in a title in the weeks that remain, he might be content to leave things as they are.  He has defied the odds and gone against the grain many times in the past, and it is a dangerous thing to second guess a tennis player and what he believes he needs to achieve success.