Rafael Nadal not ruling out French Open withdrawal: Won’t be the end of the world

22-time Grand Slam Rafael Nadal sparked fears about retiring without playing the French Open for one last time in his career. Speaking ahead of his return to the Madrid Open, Nadal said he is still not 100 percent, recovering from a muscle injury that has troubled him since his return to action from a long layoff earlier in the year. The Spanish great, a winner of 14 Roland Garros titles, said he is not thinking that it would be the end of the world if he doesn’t play his favourite tournament in May.

“If I arrive in Paris the way I feel today, I won’t play. I’ll play Roland Garros if I feel competitiveâ€æ It won’t be the end of the world or the end of my career. I still have goals after Roland Garros, like the Olympics,” Nadal, who confirmed his appearance in the Laver Cup in September said on Wednesday in Madrid.

Nadal, who has played only 5 competitive matches on the tour in his last year as a professional tennis player, was preparing to be fit for the Roland Garros and the Paris Olympics. However, a muscle injury seems to be nagging him since the start of the season. Nadal did not play the Australian Open earlier in the year after he returned to action with a third-round exit in an ATP 250 tournament in Brisbane. Nadal missed the hard-court swing in the US and missed the Monte Carlo Masters in clay and returned to action in Barcelona earlier in the month. He suffered a second-round exit, but said he was happy to be competitive at the highest level.

More to follow…