Rafael Nadal talks retirement amid injury woes: 'Not afraid of life without tennis'

Tennis icon Rafael Nadal has talked about retirement amid injury concerns and at the same time has also made it clear that he is not afraid of life without tennis.

Rafael Nadal's season finished just after this year's French Open where he went down to long-time rival Novak Djokovic in the final when his chronic foot injury flared up again as a result of which he was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon, Tokyo Olympics 2020, and US Open. Rafael attempted to make a comeback in August at Washington but his injury aggravated once again and Nadal stated that he will not be able to participate in any tennis events for the remainder of the year.

Rafael Nadal retirement

"At this point, I can't predict anything. I try not to think about my age. If I don't feel fresh both physically and mentally, I'll retire. I wonder if it will take some time before that happens. I understand how happy it is to be able to play tennis for such a long time. I want to thank the sport of tennis", said Rafael Nadal while speaking to  NumberWeb.

Meanwhile, the 'King of Clay' has also added that he will not be detached from the sport which has made him what he is today, and will start an academy to help passionate youngsters excel in the game.

"I'm definitely in the sports industry. I run an academy, which will keep me connected to tennis. I like helping young players grow. I will also spend more time on my foundation, which supports economically disadvantaged children. I'm not afraid of life without tennis at all", he added.

Rafael Nadal injury update

Rafael Nadal will be hoping to be more than 100% for the first Grand Slam of 2022, the Australian Open in January as he looks forward to making a much-awaited comeback to the tennis court after a long hiatus. He will be competing for the record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title that will take him past Roger Federer and the reigning Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic with all three of them tied at 20 major titles apiece. 

Even though Nadal’s ranking has seen him drop from the top five, a strong comeback in Australia could propel him back into the elusive category.

In August this year, the Spaniard had spoken about the injury saying that he has had it since 2005 and that the doctors were very pessimistic in their view of his future in the sport.

"The injury is nothing new, it is the same injury I've had since 2005, the doctors then were very negative about my future career but I had a career I never dreamed about and so I am confident that I recover again. If my foot is better I'm confident that my tennis and my mentality will be there again soon and so you can be sure is that I will fight every single day to make that happen," Nadal said in the video uploaded on the ATP Tour Twitter page.