Rafael Nadal lost a tennis exhibition against Carlos Alcaraz in Las Vegas on Monday night with 6:3, 4:6 and 12:14 in the match tiebreak. Many duels between the two top Spanish players on the ATP tour will no longer follow due to Nadal’s approaching end to his career.
“It’s a good thing that as a player I don’t have to compete with him often anymore,” said the 37-year-old afterwards. Nadal is making his comeback this week in Indian Wells, where Alcaraz is also playing.
Words of praise for Alcaraz
Nadal emphasized that the future of Spanish tennis is in very good hands with Alcaraz. “As a fan, I will enjoy hopefully being able to watch him for many years to come,” said the veteran. In Spain you should be very lucky to have such an up-and-coming top player.
“He’s an incredible player. He’s only 20 and has already won two Grand Slam tournaments and many other important tournaments,” Nadal said in praise.
Alcaraz triumphed at the US Open in 2022 and Wimbledon in 2023, as well as ten other tournament wins at non-major level. In the world rankings, only the Serb Novak Djokovic is ahead of the Spaniard. Like Nadal, Alcaraz was already at the top of the rankings.
Nadal will not return there and, after years plagued by injuries, is currently only number 652 in the world. Since his body is no longer working as well as he would like, 2024 will probably be his last year on the tour. “At the moment things are going in this direction,” confirmed the 22-time Grand Slam tournament winner these days.
Most recently, Nadal had to take a break for almost a year due to a complicated hip injury. He only returned to the tour in Australia in January, but was stopped by the next injury at the tournament in Brisbane after two wins. The result: no Australian Open, instead more rest and rehab.
“Unfortunately I wasn’t able to complete the program that I had planned,” said the left-hander, who also had to cancel the tournament in Doha.
Give it your all the last few times on sand
But now he wants to get match practice again at the Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells. Because the clay court season that begins in April is what Nadal is still struggling for. “Whatever I have left in me, I want to let it out during the clay court season,” said the former world number one.
His last big goals are the French Open and the Olympic Games, both of which take place in his tennis living room at the Stade Roland Garros. The Court Philippe-Chatrier is where Nadal celebrated his greatest successes and where he became a legend.
He has won the title 14 times in Paris, a final triumph there would mean everything to him. But it is still questionable whether Nadal will really be able to win over five sets for two weeks again. “I would like to say adios when I’m doing well, when I’m competitive and having fun on the court,” Nadal said in Las Vegas.
The performance there in front of almost 10,000 spectators made him confident. Things went “better than expected” against Alcaraz. Now the primary goal in Indian Wells is to stay injury-free.
The three-time Indian Wells winner will make his first appearance on Thursday. It is not yet clear against whom. It is also a comeback for Alcaraz, as he suffered an ankle injury in the first round game in Rio de Janeiro on February 20th.
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2024-03-04 12:21:05
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