Rafael Nadal lays out retirement timeline in honest admission over comeback
The 22-time Grand Slam winner has provided another update on his future following a season that has been plagued with injuries.
Djokovic celebrates after ending year as world no.1
Rafael Nadal has admitted there are "many possibilities" that he could retire from tennis next year after a season hampered by injuries. The tennis icon added that he had considered retiring from the sport on several occasions but is still willing to mount a comeback in 2024.
Related articles
Nadal has endured a tough season on the courts following a hip injury he suffered back in January at the Australian Open. The 37-year-old sustained the injury during a straight-sets defeat to Mackenzie McDonald in the second round of the tournament, forcing him to withdraw from the following Indian Wells and Miami Open tournaments.
While undergoing assessments on the injury it was determined that he would miss the remaining Grand Slam events of the year, seeing him dramatically fall the rankings to World No. 664 - his first time out of the top 100 since 2003.
His lack of game time prompted suggestions that he would retire from tennis while in the twilight of his career. Fanning the flames he told Spanish newspaper AS Diario: "Possibly 2024 will be my last year."
Having recently been named to compete in the 2024 Australian Open Men's Singles, Nadal has addressed retiring from tennis again in a video posted on his social media.
“It's a reality, there are many chances that it will be my last year without any doubt," Nadal admitted. "There are chances that it may only be half a year, there are possibilities that it may be a full year, there are possibilities that we may not be able to reach all that.
"These are things right now that I do not have the capacity to be able to answer, this is the truth. I am only in conditions to say that I return to compete that I continue having in my head that the normal thing or that there are many possibilities, that it is my last year, and I am going to enjoy the tournaments in that way.
Don't miss...
Tennis influencer Rachel Stuhlmann undergoes serious neck surgery after crash [LATEST]
Novak Djokovic reacts to protégé winning first tournament after funding him [LATEST]
Nick Kyrgios makes honest admission over John McEnroe relationship [LATEST]
“I do not want to announce it [retirement] because in the end I do not know what can happen and I have to give myself the opportunity not to say one thing and then I can be a slave of what I have said.
“I think it is going to be like that but I can’t be 100% sure to come back to compete and if suddenly things and my physique allows me to continue and I enjoy what I do why am I going to set a deadline? I think it makes no sense.”
The 22-time Grand Slam champion also admitted that he has considered retiring on several occasions.
“Of course I have thought many times that it did not make sense to continue playing, that in the end there have been many years, many things, many hours of work in which I did not see the result," he said. “But I still think what I said in the last press conference, that I do not deserve to end my career in a press room."
Nadal is due to be in action on Sunday, Jan. 14 2024 at the start of the Australian Open as he bids to win the Grand Slam trophy for the third time in his illustrious career.
