Rafael Nadal opted against a tribute at the 2024 Roland Garros, and he has now explained why he made that decision.
When the Spanish legend signed up to play at the Madrid Open this year, he agreed to have a special ceremony for himself after his last match. It was the last time he played in Madrid, so he agreed to be honored in a special way.
However, he refused the same ceremony at the Roland Garros, which was quite surprising, but he explained why in an interview with L'Equipe. According to the Spaniard, he's hopeful that the positive signals his body has sent him will allow him to potentially play in 2025.
It aligns with some other reports that suggested the Spaniard is considering the possibility of playing beyond this year.
"I feel like I'm finding the pleasure of playing again, having fun. I want to give myself a chance to see if my physique remains at this level or if it is only a temporary moment and that it starts to go wrong again. I give myself time to see how I will feel after the Olympic Games and then we will see what will happen, what decisions I will make."
In the same interview, Nadal also revealed that initially, he was considering the special ceremony, but as he practiced more and more, he felt it wasn't right. He simply wasn't sure it was truly the last time he played at the clay-court major.
"At first, I said, ‘OK, let's go!’ But at the last minute I said I didn’t want it, that's the truth. It would have bothered me to announce that it was the last time I was playing the tournament, knowing that I did not have the opportunity to prepare as I would have liked. And nothing prevents them from waiting a year."
"If the tribute takes place and I am retired, I will go there as a retiree. And if I still play, I will obviously be present. I preferred not to live with the idea that they had to pay tribute to me, because it was practically forcing me not to play here again and I was not ready at that time."
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