Former World No.1 Rafael Nadal recently made his tennis comeback plans public, but they have not brought much joy to his fans worldwide. The Spaniard has fallen out of the world’s top 100 for the first time in 20 years as he continues to recover from the hip injury sustained at the Australian Open in January. He is currently ranked World No. 237.
3 Things you need to know
- Rafael Nadal has 14 French Open titles to his name
- Rafael Nadal has a 112-3 win/loss record in French Open
- Novak Djokovic has won the most number of grand slam titles
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Rafael Nadal spills the beans on his return
Rafael Nadal restated his goal of completing his illustrious career in 2024. The Spanish star also confirmed that he had been under the knife for two operations in order to try and heal his hip injury.
Nadal expressed his desire to return to the tennis court but made it clear that he is not harboring hopes of winning the 2024 Australian Open, French Open, or any other Grand Slam tournament, for that matter.
Yes, I would like to play again and be competitive again, but the dream is not to come back and win Roland Garros or win Australia, so that people don’t get confused, right?” he said.
I am very aware that at the time I am in my life, all that is very far away, right? And I don’t say it’s impossible because in the end I say things, I have said it a thousand times, all things in sport, they change very quickly,” he added.
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Rafael Nadal’s battle with injuries
The 37-year-old announced in May that the hip injury he suffered at the Australian Open in January meant he had to step away from the sport to try and come back stronger. Nadal had two surgeries on his hip injury, one of which he announced publicly in June which was set to take around five months to heal.
