Rafael Nadal pulls out of Laver Cup and, with no tournaments, his future uncertain

Rafael Nadal announced Thursday that he is retiring from the Making a cupthe exhibition tournament which takes place next week in Berlin. This tournament, chosen a couple of years ago by Roger Federer to retire after playing with Nadal as a doubles partner, was the first tournament that the former world number 1 recorded after his participation in the Paris Olympic Games, and possibly his last. profession Nadal last played the Laver Cup in 2022.

“I am very disappointed to inform you that I will not be able to compete in Berlin at the Laver Cup next week,” Nadal, 38, said in a statement. To really give the European team, I have to do the best for them, and at the moment there are other players who can help them win,” he said, the champion of 22 Grand Slam titles it is not clear whether he will play again.

For now, Nadal had already dropped out before the US Open, so he missed three of the four Grand Slam events in 2024, and only played Roland Garros, from which he said goodbye with a fall in his debut against Alexander Zverev . His last appearance was in the quarter-finals of the doubles competition at the Olympic Games, after losing in the second round of singles to Novak Djokovic.

A few hours after his resignation, the Manacorí expanded: “Not being in Laver is not a drama. They are decisions that a person makes and this was clearly possible. I haven’t competed in a long time.I’m sure there will be another player who can do better. I am very intellectual, like other things at home. No problems, I train as much as I can every day“.

However, at the same time, Nadal did not set specific goals for the rest of this season, although it seems very unlikely that he will be seen involved in any official competition. So far, the only commitment that appears on his calendar is the exhibition tournament Six Kings Slam, which will be held in Saudi Arabia between October 16 and 19; It is worth remembering that Rafa is the official ambassador of the Tennis Federation of that country.

Rafael Nadal and his farewell at the Olympic Games in Paris, after losing in the doubles; It was his last match so far – Credits: @CARL DE SOUZA

“Right now I can’t point anything out. I said I would play until the Olympics in Paris and then we’ll see what happens. Now I am in that rest period, in a different time. I come from many physical problems, from a major professional job. I had set myself a goal to the Games and, once I was ready, he wanted to analyze how I felt,” said the left-hander from Manacor.

The Laver Cup, which will be held from September 20 to September 22, will be an indoor hard court tournament pitting a team from Europe against a team from the Rest of the World in a format similar to golf’s Ryder Cup. His replacement was not immediately named.