It had long been assumed that Rafael Nadal, the legendary Spaniard tennis player who won 22 Grand Slam single titles, would be hanging up his racket in the not-so-distant future. Based on Nadal’s past comments, his recent injury history and the fact that he’s competing in the 2024 French Open after his injury caused him to miss last year’s tournament, it was speculated that Roland Garros could be his final sendoff, similar to Serena Williams taking a final bow at the 2022 U.S. Open.
However, Nadal, on the eve of the French Open—which he’s won a record 14 times—pushed back on that notion that this appearance at Roland Garros would be his final. During a pre-event press conference, Nadal was asked if he had decided that this would be his final French Open.
“Don’t assume that,” Nadal responded, before noting that physically he feels better than he did weeks ago at the Italian Open, when he lost in straight sets in the second round.
“It’s a big chance it’s going to be my last Roland Garros. But if I have to tell you it’s 100 percent my last Roland Garros, sorry but I will not because I cannot predict what’s going on … In some way, I don’t want to close 100 percent the door.”
Nadal then cited that he still enjoys playing tennis and he cherishes being able to travel with his family. He also said that before, when the speculation arose that he was close to calling it a career, he wasn’t able to explore playing tennis without limitation.
“Today, in some way I cannot guarantee that it’s going to be the last one. But, of course, there’s a big chance,” admitted Nadal to reporters.
The speculation all stems from Nadal’s own comments exactly one year ago when a hip flexor injury caused him to miss the 2023 French Open—his first time not competing at Roland Garros since being a 17-year-old in 2004.
“My goal and my ambition is to try to stop and give myself an opportunity to enjoy next year,” Nadal said in May 2023. “It’s probably going to be my last year in a professional tour.
“My idea and my motivation is to try to enjoy and say goodbye to all of the tournaments that have been important for me in my tennis career this year.”
Injuries caused Nadal to not only miss the 2023 French Open, but he also missed last year’s Wimbledon and U.S. Open. He played just three matches in the entire calendar year, with none coming after January’s Australian Open, and he underwent hip surgery in June 2023. The inactivity by Nadal caused him to drop out of the top 10 rankings for the first time since April 2005, thus ending the longest top 10 streak in ATP history. Nadal, who began the year as the No. 2 player in the world ended it ranked No. 670.
He returned to play at the Brisbane International in the first week of January and had a promising start, knocking off 2020 U.S. Open champion Dominic Thiem and then 2023 Australian Open doubles champion Jason Kubler in the first two rounds. However, injury struck again, and that same surgically operated hip flared up in his next match, which he would lose to Jordan Thompson. Nadal would lose more than just the match, as the injury would cause him to miss the year’s first major Down Under at the Australian Open.
Nadal made his way back to the court in April in his native Spain where he fell in the second round of the Barcelona Open in straight sets. The next week he played in the Madrid Open where he won his first three matches before losing in the fourth round, also in straight sets. His final event before heading to Roland Garros was the Italian Open where he lost in the second round, again in straight sets. So, he is entering the 2024 French Open without having won a match in the quarterfinals or later of any tournament since Wimbledon in July 2022.
Despite a rough last few years, Nadal is focusing on the present because, as he said, he can’t predict what the future will hold. His immediate future is facing Alexander Zverev in the first round of the 2024 French Open on Monday. Nadal and Zverev have played 10 times previously, with Nadal holding a 7–3 edge, including a 5–1 record on clay, which is what Roland Garros consists of.
Nadal owns a record 14 French Open titles, which is as many as the two men with next-most combined in Max Decugis (eight) and Bjorn Borg (six). His 14 championships at Roland Garros are the same number as the legendary Pete Sampras has titles at all four majors combined. Nadal holds an astounding 112–3 record at the French Open, or a 97.4 percent win rate, and his 22 Grand Slam championships are second most amongst men, trailing only Novak Djokovic’s 24.
