It felt a bit like farewell when, despite his withdrawal from Indian Wells, Rafael Nadal once again took the time to fulfill many fans’ autograph requests. The Spaniard never lost his greatness, even after personal setbacks.
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And this new cancellation has to feel like another one, even if one thing runs like a common thread through his career: big highlights in the form of big titles alternate with low points in the form of tournament cancellations due to injuries.
In what may now be his last year as a professional, the setbacks have predominated so far. On Wednesday, the 22-time Grand Slam champion said he was not yet in a position to “play at the highest level.”
The 37-year-old traveled to the Californian desert at the end of February to train under optimal conditions for his comeback on the ATP tour.
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Nadal’s body fails stress test in Las Vegas
Worth mentioning: Last Sunday, Nadal was on the tennis court for a show competition. At the “Netflix Slam”, organized by the streaming giant of the same name, he competed against his compatriot Carlos Alcaraz in Las Vegas.
He narrowly lost the game in front of almost 12,000 spectators in the match tiebreak with 6:3, 4:6, 12:14. The event was supposed to be a test for the Spaniard before his tour comeback – and his body obviously didn’t pass it.
The decision was not easy for him. After all, he has already won the tournament, which is often referred to as the “fifth Grand Slam of the year,” three times. The crowd-pleaser is also good friends with the owner of the tennis tournament, software billionaire Larry Ellison.
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But Nadal simply didn’t see any other way out than cancellation: “I can’t lie to myself and I can’t lie to the many fans,” he explained on Twitter.
Interesting background information from a former tennis professional
Since he didn’t mention it himself, the first assumption was that Nadal doesn’t feel fit enough yet or that the old injury is still causing problems. If you believe the Spanish Davis Cup boss David Ferrer, there is something different behind it.
The ex-professional was a guest on the Spanish-language commentary of the “Netflix Slam” and mentioned there that Nadal had already suffered a back contracture before his trip to Indian Wells.
There was also an indication of this during the duel with Alcaraz, when Nadal grimaced after an overhead ball and indicated to his team that the shot had caused him pain.
Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas simply said about Nadal’s cancellation: “We wish him a speedy recovery and hope that he can get back into action soon.”
Nadal was plagued by injuries as a youngster
The former world number two from Germany is unlikely to have this exclusive wish. Nadal is very popular among fans and fellow players. This was also shown by the great sympathy when the Spaniard had to cancel the French Open in 2023.
The man from Mallorca has often had to forego major participation; for the first time, as a 17-year-old, he was unable to play the French Open in 2003 due to elbow problems. Problems with the wrist, foot, hip or knee: the list has gotten longer and longer over the years.
His foot in particular continues to cause problems for the Spaniard. Nadal suffers from the very rare Müller-Weiss syndrome. “There are days when I almost can’t go down the stairs,” he reported in an interview with Movistar at the end of September 2023.
The farewell to the ATP tour is approaching
2024 could now be Nadal’s last year as a professional tennis player. His big goal is to say goodbye with dignity. “I would like to say adios when I’m doing well, being competitive and having fun on the pitch,” he emphasized again at a press conference in Las Vegas.
Easier said than done. The start of the new year was extremely unfortunate. His serve at the Brisbane tournament in the first week of January would mark the start of his comeback tour – almost a year after his last tour match.
He won his opening game against Dominic Thiem easily and moved into the quarter-finals after his subsequent win against Australian Jason Kubler. Nadal was in surprisingly good form, which raised the hopes of many of his fans.
But the following game against Jordan Thompson was his last appearance on the ATP tour to date. Nadal narrowly lost after missing match points in the second set. Instead of victory, he suffered a muscle injury that put him out of action for a longer period of time.
Tennis fans see Rafael Nadal less and less on the court. His comeback attempt in Brisbane in early 2024 ended in another injury.
French Open and Olympics as big goals
Since then, the tennis world has been waiting for his return at an ATP event. Nadal is primarily working towards the clay court season, which is why the next Masters in Miami wasn’t an option for him anyway.
Because two events have a special meaning for the clay court king on his supposed farewell tour. Both take place at the site of his greatest successes: the Stade Roland Garros in Paris.
In addition to the French Open, where he has already triumphed an incredible 14 times, the Olympic tennis competitions will also be held there in 2024. He had to cancel three Olympic participations, but Nadal was the only one of the Big 3 (Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and himself) to have won Olympic gold in singles in 2008.
The tennis star’s career outcome is uncertain
Whether Nadal can celebrate another major title in his career is currently more than questionable – at least as long as his body continues to cause problems. At the moment it seems as if Nadal has to be happy about every opportunity to be on the court at all.
In addition, young top stars such as Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have further developed their game in his absence from the tour. Tennis experts like Boris Becker are already talking about a changing of the guard.
The French Open record winner celebrated his last major title wins in 2022 by winning the Australian Open and the French Open, before he suffered an injury in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon that put him out of action for a longer period of time.
However, there will never be an answer to the exciting question of whether much more would have been possible in Rafael Nadal’s career if his body had cooperated more often.
Nadal is hoping for the clay court season
The tennis star’s last big goal is to present himself in good form again on the Center Court in Paris at the two highlight events.
Before that, Nadal wants to play a few more clay court tournaments, ideally the Masters in Monte Carlo in April. After all, he wants to say goodbye to the audience on the pitch and not with a press conference.
2024-03-09 14:15:17
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