French Open: Rafael Nadal’s recurrent foot problem means that every tournament he enters, or perhaps every match he plays, could be his last. It comes after the Spaniard defeated his arch-rival, Novak Djokovic, the world No. 1 and defending champion, in a late-night classic at the French Open on Tuesday.
The force, vitality, and physicality of a player about to be 36, as Nadal will be on Friday, the day of his semi-final against Alexander Zverev, were the foundations of his epic four-set victory.
When Nadal hobbled through a loss to Denis Shapovalov just three weeks ago in Rome, he seemed a shell of the guy who had sent Djokovic packing.
However, Nadal and his doctor are managing the ailment in the hopes of helping him win his 14th Roland Garros title and 22nd Grand Slam.
“I stated in Rome that I’d bring my doctor with me. With the doctor on hand, you can take steps to aid.
“So now is not the time to discuss it. We’ll talk about it after the competition when my tournament is finished, I said.
“But, yeah, I am putting everything that I have to try to play this tournament (in) the best condition possible. I don’t know what can happen after, honestly, but here I think I’m going to be fine.”
The Spaniard appears to be playing above his pain threshold, but the fact that this could be his final French Open pushes him to the brink of all-time brilliance.
“Yes, I’m at a loss for words. Isn’t that crystal plain to you? “he stated
“I’m going to participate in this tournament because we’re doing everything we can to prepare for it, but I’m not sure what will happen after that.
“I mean, I have what I have in the foot, so if we can’t find a minor improvement or a solution for that, it’s going to be extremely difficult for me. That’s all there is to it.
“I am just enjoying every day that I have the chance to be here, and without thinking much about what can happen in the future.
“Of course I’m going to keep fighting to find a solution for that, but for the moment we haven’t. So just to give myself a chance to play another semi-final here in Roland Garros (provides) a lot of energy for me.”
Nadal is now focused on his next opponent, German third seed Alexander Zverev, in the semi-finals.
“If I am not playing good or if I am losing in that semi-final match, it’s not going to be because I’m not gonna be focused on that semi-final match. I have experience on that, he said.
“I am not the kind of guy and player that emotionally goes high and low. I am very stable, I think, emotionally.
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