With a desire in sight: Rafael Nadal’s future after his farewell to Roland Garros

For the fourth time in history, Rafael Nadal loses a match at Roland Garros. In 2024, of course, the situation is very different from that experienced in 2009 against Soderling or in 2015 and 2021 against Djokovic. For the first time since winning the Coupe des Mousquetaires in 2005, the Spaniard was not the favorite at Roland Garros.

And his personal and tennis moment led to the defeat against Alexander Zverev (4th) by 3-6, 6-7 and 3-6 in the first round being the “logical” thing. A powerful statement, considering Rafa has won the tournament 14 times and four of them without losing a single set. But the truth is that this season the Spaniard arrived in Paris to say goodbye, or so we thought a few days ago.

Indeed, even if he insisted that 2024 would most likely be his last year on the professional circuit, he did not want to close the door to a return to Roland-Garros next year. “I want to thank you, the energy I felt was incredible. I don’t know if this is the last time I’ll be here. I can’t say 100%. But if that’s the last time I enjoyed it. . The people were amazing and it’s hard to describe in words the love I felt,” he commented enthusiastically before leaving the main field.

A sentence of hope for the millions of Manacorí supporters, who after being unable to play for almost the entire year 2023 due to injuries, had announced their farewells for this season. A discourse that has mutated over time. Even if he, for example, confirmed that he would no longer play the Masters 1000 in Madrid, he left the door open to tournaments like Barcelona, ​​Rome and Roland Garros. He even mentioned the following months on his calendar.

At the beginning of the year, Rafael Nadal intended to play the Australian Open, but a small injury while playing at the ATP in Brisbane (precisely to prepare for the tournament in Melbourne) forced him to withdraw from the first Grand Slam of the season. just a week from its start.

Roland Garros, on the other hand, seemed to be an obligatory step, but the Spaniard himself admitted to having had many doubts about his participation. In Madrid, he even warned that if his feelings did not improve in two weeks, he would not participate in Roland-Garros. Finally, this change arrived and this Monday they fell in the first round against the world number four.

The calendar now points to Wimbledon, the third major tournament of the year and a tournament he has won twice. He also won one of the most emblematic victories of his career there, andThe memorable 2008 final against Roger Federer where he started 2-0 and had to finish fighting in a fifth set to win his first title at the All England Tennis Club.

Despite the importance of the tournament, Nadal has confirmed that he will not be in London in 2024.It seems difficult for him to go to Wimbledon. I don’t think it’s appropriate to move from grass to ground when the Games are on land. . This is not a positive idea. “I dreamed of playing at Roland Garros and I felt competitive, but it wasn’t enough,” he said.

The sentence in which he announces that he will not play at Wimbledon also reveals his next big goal: the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The 22-time Grand Slam winner is determined to once again represent Spain in the competition where he won gold twice. (singles in Beijing 2008 and doubles in Rio de Janeiro 2016).

“I hope to return to this track for the Games, it motivates me and I hope to be well prepared. After the Games, I have to see how I am doing in terms of motivation, physique and tennis level to see if it makes sense to continue playing. “, he admitted at a press conference.

His possible presence at the Olympic Games, which are played on clay and in the facilities of Roland Garros, also brings closer to a special moment for Spanish tennis and he is the best athlete in its history. He intends to compete in doubles with Carlos Alcaraz his heir.

Indeed, in an interview, the 21-year-old tennis player admitted that he had not dared to ask Nadal if he wanted to play doubles with him. Something that Rafa took with humor. “You don’t have to ask for anything; If there’s nothing strange, we’ll play. For me it is also a great illusion and if I am not wrong for him too, as I have been told. It would be good to play a tournament before the Olympics to prepare and get back on the field,” he admitted.

What could this tournament be? The truth is that the options are few. Alcaraz will go yes or yes to Wimbledon to defend the crown he won in 2023 Thus, after passing through London, there will only be two weeks before the start of the Games. The calendar in this window features the ATP 500 in Hamburg and the ATP 250 in Gstaad, Bastad, Umag and Kitzbühel.