According to tournament director Amelie Mauresmo, Rafael Nadal didn't want a farewell ceremony at this year's Roland Garros.
Fans got a chance to see the Spanish legend say goodbye to the Madrid Open crowd a few weeks ago as the event stagged a minor farewell ceremony for him. It was a really emotional moment for everybody involved, even some other players like Iga Swiatek.
The Polish player famously idolized Nadal growing up. We won't be seeing that at Roland Garros, however, as the Spanish player declined to have a ceremony like that, according to the tournament director, Amelie Mauresmo.
She told the media that the event was planning a ceremony, but Nadal's refusal basically means we won't see anything more than possibly a minor acknowledgment.
"As you can imagine, we had something planned for him. But he wants to leave the door open so we’re not going to push him to do anything. It’s his decision when he wants to have a proper ceremony or proper goodbye and proper farewell. So we’re not going to do it this year."
What is interesting, though, is that Mauresmo confirmed that Nadal indeed wants to keep the door open for possibly returning to Roland Garros in the future.
He's now confirmed a few times in recent weeks that this Roland Garros might not be his final one, even though he previously said that this year may be his final on the ATP Tour.
It's all been very mysterious with Nadal lately, but it's tied to the fact that he truly doesn't know his condition and chances of continuing. His upcoming months could be full of minor injuries that basically signal to him that his body truly can't handle the top level anymore, or they could go smoothly.
If it goes smoothly and he stays healthy, then there is no reason to retire if he's still feeling motivated to compete.