"My goal is higher than sadness from this loss" admits Rafael Nadal after Madrid Open exit
ATPSaturday, 07 May 2022 at 14:00
Updated at Wednesday, 13 November 2024 at 14:57
Rafael Nadal lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Madrid Open, however, the experienced Spaniard saw only positives despite the loss.
After winning in their previous two matches, Nadal lost in his third meeting with the young Spaniard. However, the 2022 Madrid Open was Nadal's first tournament after coming back from an injury, and so reaching the quarter-finals and playing a high-quality match against his younger opponent shows good signs of recovery for the World No. 4.
Still, loss to Alcaraz was naturally disappointing for the 21-time Grand Slam champion, who always has only the highest goals, but following the match, he chose to focus on the positives.
"I have played two-and-a-half hours [today] and three matches. This is a positive outcome. From here onwards, just looking forward with optimism and [I’m] happy and excited. We will see what happens. You have to believe."
"He was better than me in several aspects of the match and several aspects of the game, and I need to improve. I just accept it naturally with calm and with security that there is a path to continue."
Because of the fact that he was coming back from an injury, this loss was very easy to digest for the 13-time Roland Garros champion, especially against his compatriot.
Nadal congratulated Alcaraz after the loss and wished him the best for the remainder of the tournament in Madrid. The youngster will take on Novak Djokovic in his semi-final match.
"It's an easy loss to digest in that regard, because we knew what we could expect here, and now because of that, I don't take away any merit from Carlos. Congratulations to him. He's playing great, and I hope the best for him for the rest of the tournament."
Nadal, on the other hand, focused on his own path. As he revealed, his only goal is to be healthy at the 2022 French Open, and he realizes that losses like this are part of his mission.
"You just recover that with days and with matches, like yesterday, like the first day, like today. This is the reality. From there onwards, you just have to continue that path with constant determination, with the correct determination."
"You know that when you come from a period like the one I came from, you have to accept the things and just go with this determination because in the medium term, we have a goal that is higher than any sadness that I may have for losing."
"I tell you, honestly, my only dream is be in Paris healthy enough and physically good enough to compete at the highest level possible. If that happens, I know it's a tournament that I have been playing well a lot of times in my career. I know very well the place, and why can I not be competitive again and give me one more chance. That could be a dream for me."
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