‘Maybe there was a chance to say goodbye!’ EMOTIONAL Rafael Nadal admits he was close to HANGING up his racquet amidst injury struggles

‘Maybe there was a chance to say goodbye!’ EMOTIONAL Rafael Nadal admits he was close to HANGING up his racquet amidst injury struggles

Rafael Nadal breaks down after reaching the finals of the 2022 Australian Open

Rafael Nadal is a true definition of the word warrior. How many times have we witnessed the Spaniard being pinned down by injuries, and how many times has be risen from out of nowhere? This is exactly what Nadal has done in the start of 2022 season, as he booked a place in the finals of Australian Open 2022.

Rafael Nadal defeated Matteo Berrettini in four sets to reach his sixth Australian Open final, and face Daniil Medvedev for the second time in a major final. Nadal revealed he went through plenty of challenges whilst recovering from a foot injury, but he kept going and constant support of his friends and family pushed him on.

“As I said, no, I went through a lot of challenging moments, a lot of days of hard work without seeing a light there. But still working and still receiving plenty of support from my team and from my family, too, without a doubt,” Nadal said.

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Rafael Nadal returned to action on the tour for the first time at ATP Melbourne, having last played a professional level match in August. Hence, not many would have expected him to get this far at Australian Open 2022.

Rafael Nadal admits being close to retirement!

Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal admitted that he was close to calling it a day and retiring from tennis. He stated that he consulted with his family members, coaching staff and friends. Just four months ago, he was on crutches, and now he is chasing balls and into the finals of Australian Open 2022.

“Yeah, I mean, a lot of conversations with the team, with the family about what can happen or what is going to happen if the things continue like this, thinking that maybe is a chance to say goodbye. So, I mean, that was not a lot of months ago”, he said.

Rafael Nadal thanked his fans for their continuous support, who have stuck by him through thick and thin. Nadal said he just cannot express how delighted he is on reaching another Grandslam final.

https://twitter.com/AustralianOpen/status/1487062915718868994

“To be able to be where I am today, I don’t know, I really can’t explain in words how important is for me in terms of energy, in terms of personal satisfaction, in terms of being very thankful for all the support that I received from the fans and especially from the people really close to me,” Nadal continued.

Also Read: WATCH: Rafael Nadal has an EMOTIONAL BREAKDOWN after reaching the finals of the 2022 Australian Open