Rafael Nadal continues with his tune-up after the hip muscle injury suffered in the Brisbane tournament at the beginning of the year and which has delayed his return to the courts, postponed again until March, at the Las Vegas exhibition with Carlos Alcaraz and at the Indian Wells Masters 1000 after refusing to play Doha, as initially planned.
Nadal returned to competition in Brisbane, in the first days of the 2024 after almost a year off the slopes. He intends to return to the competition to start his professional countdown.
«I know I’m not here to play with these big ones. Especially because I haven’t played in a year and they are very good. It’s not enough to have a past. I thought I was going to have a shoot and I couldn’t have it. It hurts me to have missed the Australian Open because it cuts everything off and in Brisbane I had good feelings. When you have to stop in Brisbane and stop in Doha, everything slows me down and I would like to arrive on earth with more certainty than I am going to arrive,” he said in an interview with Cadena Cope.
Even so, Nadal maintains his roadmap with participation in the clay season, especially in Roland Garros and the Games. Paris Olympics. Although some days optimism wanes.
«Of course there are days when I have negative thoughts and when things go wrong you think about what to do. I have some bad hours and I have to continue but I have not considered a hasty withdrawal Because of what has happened, I have set objectives,” he added. The winner of twenty-two grand relies on his team and his family.
«I’m lucky because I have a team that is almost the same as when I started playing, trustworthy people by my side, they are more than co-workers and also a family that is very important, very close that I can talk to them with naturalness and confidence,” said Nadal, who has not stopped watching tennis although he watches more soccer games.
«I watch tennis from time to time, when there are matches that interest me. I like to see how others are doing and in Brisbane that was the case. But I watch more football, a lot more. I see those who leave me a weekend“, he indicated.
Now Nadal thinks about back to the slopes. It comes first, before winning. Even Roland Garros, his tournament. «Today it is impossible to answer this and it is very difficult to think that I can win Roland Garros. What excites me is to get there and enjoy Roland Garros. If I thought I had zero chance of winning I would be doing other things.
Questions about your withdrawal They are more frequent in recent times. She has thought about how she would like to say goodbye. «Yes, in my head is my ideal farewell. But I’m not going to say it.