Roddick Cautions Nadal Optimism After Madrid Withdrawal Speculation
ATPSunday, 16 April 2023 at 04:00
Updated at Monday, 21 April 2025 at 19:41
Andy Roddick isn't very optimistic about Rafael Nadal's chances of making a successful return after the Spaniard suffered a hip injury.
There is a lot of speculation that Nadal will probably withdraw from the Madrid Open after he withdrew from the Barcelona Open. The Spaniard is still not fit enough to play competitive tennis, and it's not good news for him with the Roland Garros inching closer and closer.
Roddick, who works as an analyst for Tennis Channel, said that the news coming out of Spain could be concerning because hip injuries are quite challenging to deal with.
"Yeah, it very well could be. Listen, did any of us think he was going to sneak two slams in last year, be healthy, and play a solid amount of tennis through the first seven months? Probably not. The space between his injuries is getting tighter and tighter. It seems like they are cumulative now."
"Whereas he used to play, he would take three or four months off at a time but then come back completely healthy. It does not seem like he has been completely healthy since last year's run at Wimbledon."
Roddick could be right that Nadal is battling a cumulative injury, meaning he might never be fully healthy again. That is something familiar to both Roddick and many other tennis players.
According to the former ATP World No. 1 player from the United States, Nadal is likely going to focus mainly on Roland Garros moving forward and see what he can do there.
"For the rest of his career, he is going to draw a bright red circle around the French Open and do everything in his power to get matches going in. This is a real concern if he's missing out on Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, and Madrid. He's a diesel engine, he needs those reps going into events. This is very concerning for Rafa fans."
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