“I don’t think he is going to retire after Roland Garros,” Former World No. 2 disagrees with Alexander Zverev on Rafael Nadal’s possible retirement in 2023 season
Alex Corretja believes that there is still gas left in the tank for Rafael Nadal and he will be back stronger for the clay swing.
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Alex Corretja and Rafael Nadal
Spanish Former World No.2 Alex Corretja hopes to see Rafael Nadal longer on the courts. In a recent interview, he opined that the hip injury that occurred during his match against Mackenzie McDonald that eventually led to his loss in the second round of the Australian Open 2023 will not make the Spanish Great think about retirement yet. This directly contradicts Alexander Zverev’s claim that Nadal will retire after the French Open 2023.
Corretja quoted, “We know that Rafa is going to try until the end of his career, whatever he feels. So I don’t necessarily feel that he’s going to retire after Roland-Garros, he’s going to go day by day. He actually said on Eurosport in Spain something like ‘I’m going to continue until I see that I’m not going to be able to continue playing“.
Continuing his train of thought, Corretja explained why he thinks that Nadal won’t be giving up soon, “So I don’t think it’s going to be the end of Rafa after Roland-Garros. Definitely when he’s got these injuries it is [a little] step back in his mind and he also needs to recover. But if it’s a short one I think it will give him the hope to get ready again to hopefully have another chance to win another major – which might make a big difference on his career or not.
“Because at the end, when you’ve been winning so much, I don’t think we need to count on whether he wins more majors or not. Rafa Nadal is going to last forever, whatever he does on his future.”
Rafael Nadal is known for coming back from injuries and setbacks. He will have to go through the same phase one more time. The 36-year-old and his whole team especially his beloved Maria had to go through a catalog of emotions from the point in which the Spanish Great started showing signs of hip injury during the second set of his second-round match. The final score of the match was 4-6,4-6,5-7.
Was this the last Australian Open of Rafael Nadal?
The speculations that this might be the last time Rafael Nadal might have played in Rod Laver Arena were further fueled by his Instagram post. Usually, a person who never fails to leave a message that we will see again next year decided not to write those lines this time. In an emotional post, he did say thanks to everyone but no mention of coming back. Maybe that’s the reason such a strong woman like his Mery started weeping in the stands? Or just thinking about the fate that his man has to go through the same trauma of getting medications one more time, like hundreds of times before?
It was not about losing a tennis match anyway because she was there with him from day one through all the heartbreaking losses which come in sports with monumental victories. However, Alex Corretja doesn’t want to believe that the Spanish hero will hang up his rackets soon even though his team’s antics surprised him, “I made me feel a little bit weird when he went into the middle of the court to say goodbye…the way he did it, it made me feel like maybe he’s thinking ‘OK, this is the end in Australia‘”
“I think the whole Nadal team was there to also show respect to Rafa because I think he deserved it. He tried until the end even if he felt that he had no chance to win the match. So that’s why I think they paid tribute to him.”
He concluded his thoughts in a hopeful way like the millions of his fans around the globe, “I hope it’s not the case because normally when you are playing you feel something there, so maybe he pulled his muscle and the fact that he played one more set, I don’t think it really mattered if he got more hurt. I’m sure that Rafa will be back for the clay season where he will have his best chance to win more tournaments, more matches, and to get in shape in a good situation.”
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