"I will never be following that goal again" Nadal on fight for no. 1
ATP
Rafael Nadal admitted that he will never chase the World No. 1 rank in his career again. He's aware that at this stage of his career, it might be impossible to reach the spot.
Nadal was very close to becoming the ATP World No. 1 player again. He needed to have some success at the 2022 ATP Finals in Turin, but after he lost his first two matches at the event, he also lost the chance to reach the top spot.
After his loss to Felix Auger-Aliassime in his second round-robin match, Nadal admitted that while he would have been happy to reach the World No. 1 rank, it also wasn't the main goal for him.
He's aware that at this stage of his career, he can't set goals that are dependent on consistently performing and avoiding injuries.
"Probably you only heard one part of the answer. Of course, finish the season as World No. 1, it's a great achievement. It would be an amazing achievement at this stage of my career. But on the other hand, I say that I will never be following that goal again."
Nadal won two Grand Slam tournaments in 2022, and even that wasn't enough to become the top-ranked player. Since he knows that his schedule will become more and more restricted in the future, he also knows that it won't be possible for him to chase the World No. 1 spot anymore.
"That happens because the situation brings me to that position, fantastic. But my body, my age, my personal situation don't allow me to follow that goal any more, no? Winning two slams was not enough."
"Of course, it was not enough because I was not able to play. I don't know how many tournaments I played, 10, 11, maybe 12. Finished maybe nine, 10, in good conditions."
