Rafael Nadal addressed retirement questions with frustration immediately after his loss to Novak Djokovic at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The long-time rivals clashed for the 60th time in the second round, with Djokovic emerging victorious in a 6-1, 6-4 match. This defeat has fueled speculation that it might have been the last singles match of Nadal’s illustrious career.
After leaving the court, Nadal expressed his exasperation over the persistent retirement inquiries. When asked if he had considered whether he had just walked off Court Philippe-Chatrier for the final time, Nadal retorted, “Every day, huh? Every day you want me to retire every day guys. You ask me for that every single day.”
While the 22-time Grand Slam champion did not provide a definitive answer regarding his career’s end, he did share insight into what might eventually lead him to retire.
“I am trying to do my best every single day. I answer but I cannot live every single day with the feeling that it’s going to be or not going to be my last match. I come here, I try my best, I play and when I decide to stop playing or when I decide to keep going, I will let you know. I don’t know, I just try my best every single day, trying to enjoy a thing that I have been enjoying for so much time.”
Nadal has endured numerous injuries over the past two years, significantly impacting his career. He acknowledged that he would retire if he felt unable to compete at the desired level.
“I have been suffering a lot of injuries the last two years so if I feel that I am not competitive enough to keep going or physically I’m not ready enough to keep going, I will stop and I will let you know. But I mean, I don’t think every day about if I am retiring or not.”
Despite the ongoing speculation, Nadal remains at peace with the idea of retirement when the time comes. “That’s part of life. Everything has a beginning, everything has an end. I will miss playing tennis at the competitive stages as probably all the professionals that have been playing tennis for almost all their lives and they really like what they do. I’m a player that likes what I do and of course I’m going to miss the adrenaline of playing but you know, guys, I cannot complain.”
“I have been playing on all these courts for 20 years, fighting for the most important things. I achieved much more than I ever dreamed. If that’s the last match here or when it’s going to be the last match here, I’m going to accept [it] in peace, I give my best, I can’t complain anymore.”
Djokovic in Paris, ranking, and results in 2024
Now the world no.
2, Djokovic has achieved a composed 25-7 record in 2024. Djokovic is competing in Paris where he managed to beat Matthew Ebden 6-0 6-1 and the world no.161 Rafael Nadal 6-1 6-4.Novak Djokovic will square off with the world no.70 Dominik Koepfer in the 3rd round. Their record is 1-0 for Djokovic.
The Serbian was the finalist in Wimbledon.
The Serbian won 98 titles in his career: 52 on hard courts, 19 on clay courts, 19 on indoor courts and 8 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Djokovic has scheduled to play next in Montreal (National Bank Open). He will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 5th of August.
Rafael Nadal in 2024
Ranked no.161, Nadal played his last match on the 29th of July when he was defeated by world no.2 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
Currently, during this year Rafael has achieved an overall 12-7 win-loss record. Rafael Nadal’s best performance of the current year was getting to the final in Bastad.
Nadal will compete next at the U.S. Open (U.S. Open). He will start from the main draw that will commence on the 26th of August.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal squared off 60 times. Their current head to head is 31-29 for Djokovic. Before, the last time they played each other, Novak Djokovic won 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (Olympics) on the 29th of July 2024.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal |
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