I was close to retiring, thought French Open this year might be my last tournament: Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal was seen in terms alongside his great rival and friend Roger Federer after the Swiss legend’s farewell match at the Laver Cup in London on Saturday. There were emotional scenes at the O2 Arena as Federer took the court for one last time before drawing curtains on his legendary career.

Nadal paired up with Federer for Team Europe in the 20-time Grand Slam champion’s last game of his career. The Spaniard has now revealed he himself was close to retirement earlier this year and thought French Open would be his last tournament.

The 36-year-old has enjoyed a brilliant season so far having won two Grand Slam titles in 2022. Nadal won the Australian Open at the start of the year before clinching the French Open title after defeating Casper Ruud in the final.  He left behind both Federer and Novak Djokovic to take the top spot among male players with the highest number of Grand Slam singles titles in their careers.

However, Nadal revealed he was contemplating a decision about his career during the French Open due to injuries. He has had an injury-laden season and had to pull out of the semi-final at Wimbledon earlier this year due to an abdominal injury.

“I don’t know, I’m not at that moment yet. I was close to that time this year. I’m not going to lie to you. During Roland Garros I thought that it might be my last tournament, this is the reality. Although from then on everything went very bad physically, I broke my abdominal twice, at Wimbledon and in New York,” Nadal told Spanish outlet AS.

Also Read: In pics| Roger Federer leaves everyone in tears as he bids adieu to tennis

However, Nadal is not thinking about retirement anymore and is focused on recovering well from his current injuries to return strongly. He remained tight-lipped on where he will be seen in action next but the 22-time Grand Slam champion confirmed he is not going anywhere anytime soon.

“It has been an accumulation of important misfortunes, added to all these personal things. But I’m not in that moment and I don’t want to think about that moment. Today, what I want is to get back to normality, for everything to go well with my personal life, which is the top priority, and then organise my life in the right way. Have peace of mind in my personal and professional life,” he explained.

Also Read: WATCH – Rafael Nadal cannot hold back tears as rival Roger Federer bids emotional farewell to tennis

Former world no.1 Nadal had a phenomenal start to the season this year and went on a twenty-match unbeaten streak while clinching two Grand Slam crowns at the Australian Open and French Open. He came close to the final at Wimbledon but had to withdraw due to an injury. Nadal will be looking to end the year on a high and reclaim the top spot in the ATP rankings.