Rafael Nadal reiterates French Open could be his last after beating Novak Djokovic
The tournament’s most successful player ever beat his rival in the quarter-finals on Tuesday
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Rafael Nadal has suggested that this year’s French Open could be his last, with injury continuing to plague the former world No 1 despite his scintillating quarter-final victory over Novak Djokovic.
Nadal has lifted the men’s singles trophy 13 times at Roland Garros, making him the most successful player in the history of the tournament. No player has won that many titles at any of the other Grand Slams, and Nadal holds more major trophies than any men’s player (21).
The Spaniard moved a step closer to a 14th French Open trophy by seeing off rival Djokovic on Tuesday, defeating the world No 1 in four sets in a late finish on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
Each step is becoming increasingly difficult for Nadal, however, as the 35-year-old – who turns 36 on Friday – continues to battle a chronic foot injury.
“I’m very clear on the fact that I don’t know what can happen [after the French Open],” Nadal said after his win against Djokovic.
“You know what I have with my foot, and if we don’t find solutions, it will be difficult. For the moment we haven’t, so I give myself a chance.
“I don’t know what will happen after this tournament. I’m very clear about that, I don’t have to hide anything at my age.
“I have what I have in my foot and if we don’t find a solution, it’s difficult for me. At the moment we haven’t found a solution.
“Playing the semi-finals gives me a lot of energy, and we’ll see how it goes down here [with my foot].”
Nadal is set to face Alexander Zverev in the final four, while the other semi-final will be determined on Wednesday.
Andrey Rublev faces Marin Cilic in one of the remaining quarter-finals, before Casper Ruud takes on Holger Rune.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments