Will not play more than what I believe works well for my body: Rafael Nadal opens up on his abdominal injury

Rafael Nadal has been unstoppable so far this season and has been enjoying a stellar run on the court having already won two Grand Slam titles and missing out closely on a third straight Grand Slam final appearance this year. The Spaniard had to pull out of the Wimbledon 2022 semi-final against Nick Kyrgios due to an abdominal injury.

Nadal looked on course to reach his third straight Grand Slam final this year after he defeated Taylor Fritz in the quarters. However, he ended up suffering a tear in his abdomen and had to pull out of the semi-final clash against Kyrgios, who went on to lose against Novak Djokovic in the final.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion recently opened up on his abdominal injury ahead of the upcoming Cincinnati Open and said he is aware of putting too much pressure on his body. Nadal said he doesn’t want to play more than what is good for his body.

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“The main thing is to stay healthy and play the events that I want to play. I will not play more than what I believe works well for my body. I am happy to be back in Cincinnati after a couple of years without the chance of being able to be here. I had a small tear in the abdomen, so it is dangerous,” Nadal told reporters ahead of the start of the Cincinnati Open.

“The abdominal is a place that is dangerous because on every serve you put a lot of effort there. I am trying to do things properly, trying to be a bit more conservative. I hope I can be ready for the action here. I want to play tennis again on the Tour. I am having a good season and I am enjoying it. I want to enjoy this week in Cincinnati,” he added.

The world no.3 had a brilliant start to the year as he went on to win the Australian Open title to clinch his 21st Grand Slam crown and move past his arch-rivals Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer on the list of male players with most Grand Slams. He extended his lead further after his dominant victory at the French Open 2022.

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Djokovic then managed to close the gap on Nadal at the Wimbledon 2022 after the Spaniard had to pull out of his semi-final meeting against Kyrgios. Djokovic defeated the Australian star in the final to notch up his 21st Grand Slam crown and now stands just one title away from equalling Nadal.