Thirty-eight years old, but still the desire to amaze and have fun. Rafael Nadal it projects itself like this to Olympic Games of Paris 2024, a new objective in the sights of the Spanish champion who confessed that he has rediscovered the pleasure of playing tennis. “I feel like I have rediscovered the pleasure of playing again, of having fun – Nadal confessed in a long interview with L’Equipe – I want to give myself the chance to see if my physique will remain at this level or if it is just a passing moment and then I will start to get worse again.” Precisely the ups and downs on a physical level have conditioned the last two years of Nadal who resumed training about ten days after Roland Garros: “I started training again a week and a half ago, the sensations are more or less good – he explained – I continue to train hard, as if it were the preseason. We’ll see how it goes in the next few weeks.”
“Paris with Alcaraz? The goal is the medal”
Nadal is firmly aiming for the Olympic tournament which he will play on his home turf, the Roland Garros he has won 14 times. He will do it in singles, but also in doubles with a special partner like Carlos Alcaraz: Rafa told the background on the birth of this Iberian dream team for Paris: “David Ferrer told me: ‘If you feel good, Carlos would like to play doubles with you‘ – he admitted – I was very happy, I can’t have a better partner. My job is to try to be ready to reach the best possible level before the Olympics. If Carlos is available and I am physically well, I think it would be interesting to train together the week before the Olympic tournament. The Olympics are team affairs, doubles are as important as singles. The final goal is the medal“.
read also
Nadal-Alcaraz will play doubles in Paris 2024
“Withdrawal? We’ll see after the Olympics”
As admitted by Nadal, the post-Olympics will also be important for a decision on the future, leaving the possibility of playing in 2025 still open: “We’ll see how I feel after the Olympics, later we will see what will happen and what decisions I will make – he said – But always with great serenity, with the satisfaction of having always given my best. And when I have to make a decision, in the end, I will make it without problems. I always said I thought it would be my last year, but I can’t be sure because in the end you don’t know what will happen in the future.”
