Le Monde
Rafael Nadal announced Thursday, May 18, he will not be playing at the French Open, a tournament he has won a record 14 times. He said his hip injury has not healed, and he expects 2024 to be his final year in professional tennis. "It's not a decision I'm taking, it's a decision my body is taking," said the 36-year-old Spanish superstar, who has played at the claycourt major every year since 2005.
Nadal, who turns 37 next month, delivered the news of his withdrawal - and future plans - during a news conference at his tennis academy in Manacor, Spain. He said he does not want to set a date for his return to the tennis tour, but expects it to take months. And then, the 22-time Grand Slam champion added: "You never know how things will turn out, but my intention is that next year will be my last year.”
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Nadal has been sidelined since hurting his left hip flexor during a second-round loss at the Australian Open on Jan. 18. An MRI exam the next day revealed the extent of the injury, and Perez-Barbadillo said at the time that Nadal was expected to need up to two months to fully recover. He initially aimed to return at the Monte Carlo Masters in March on his beloved red clay, but he wasn't able to play there, then subsequently sat out tournament after tournament, decreasing the likelihood that he would be fully fit in time for the French Open.
But for Nadal, missing other tournaments does not resonate the way missing the French Open would. He is 112-3 across 18 appearances there, a level of dominance unmatched by any man or woman at any Grand Slam event in the long annals of a sport that dates to the 1800s. When Nadal won the trophy in Paris last year at age 36 while dealing with chronic foot pain, he became the oldest champion in tournament history.
Nadal is just 1-3 this season. He has dropped seven of his past nine matches overall, dating to a fourth-round loss to Frances Tiafoe in the US Open's fourth round last September.
Play begins at Roland Garros in Paris on May 28.
Nadal, who turns 37 next month, delivered the news of his withdrawal - and future plans - during a news conference at his tennis academy in Manacor, Spain. He said he does not want to set a date for his return to the tennis tour, but expects it to take months. And then, the 22-time Grand Slam champion added: "You never know how things will turn out, but my intention is that next year will be my last year.”
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https://www.lemonde.fr/en/tennis/article/2023/05/18/rafael-nadal-pulls-out-of-french-open-because-of-hip-injury_6027151_94.html
Nadal has been sidelined since hurting his left hip flexor during a second-round loss at the Australian Open on Jan. 18. An MRI exam the next day revealed the extent of the injury, and Perez-Barbadillo said at the time that Nadal was expected to need up to two months to fully recover. He initially aimed to return at the Monte Carlo Masters in March on his beloved red clay, but he wasn't able to play there, then subsequently sat out tournament after tournament, decreasing the likelihood that he would be fully fit in time for the French Open.
But for Nadal, missing other tournaments does not resonate the way missing the French Open would. He is 112-3 across 18 appearances there, a level of dominance unmatched by any man or woman at any Grand Slam event in the long annals of a sport that dates to the 1800s. When Nadal won the trophy in Paris last year at age 36 while dealing with chronic foot pain, he became the oldest champion in tournament history.
Nadal is just 1-3 this season. He has dropped seven of his past nine matches overall, dating to a fourth-round loss to Frances Tiafoe in the US Open's fourth round last September.
Play begins at Roland Garros in Paris on May 28.
