Rafael Nadal Reveals His Future in Tennis With Recurring Foot Injury.

Rafael Nadal has been able to manage the injury to carve out an incredible career so far. Recently, at the pre-tournament conference in Indian Wells, Nadal gave an update about his foot injury. Even though the former World No. 1 accepted that the injury cannot be completely healed, he opened up about his plan of action to manage his foot for the rest of his career.

Being the 4th seed, Nadal has received a first-round bye and will start his tournament run from the second round. Being questioned about his foot during the pre-tournament conference, Nadal seemed a bit irritated by the question. He said, “It’s not good to talk all day about the foot but…if it’s okay for you guys, I will say it for the last time because if not this then trying to talk about this. I want to play tennis.”

However, going ahead, he took the question with grace, accepting his injury. “The foot is not gonna be 100% recovered, never. I have an injury on the foot that I can’t fix. That’s the truth,” he said.

The Spaniard didn’t shy away from accepting that he suffers awful pain in his foot. He also elaborated on what challenges he has been facing because of his foot. However, he also emphasized that he has been able to overcome those challenges and is doing well now. “Pain, yes I have dire pain on the foot. It’s about having the chance to be able to play without the fear of putting the foot on the right place to hit the ball. That didn’t happen for a long period of time. Now I was able to make that happen most of the days,” he asserted.

“That is why I’m enjoying tennis again. But if you tell me that the foot is not a worry for me anymore, it’s not true. I am worried about my foot every single day because as I said, I have an injury that we can’t fix,” he further added.

Nadal is on a dream run since the start of 2022. He is on a 15-0-win streak, winning 3 out of 3 tournaments he has played so far.

Talking about his future, the 21-time Grand Slam champion made a particular point about his treatment. He also pointed out the importance of finding the right balance between playing and knowing the right moments to stop for further treatment.

He said, “For the moment I can be happy about the things, how they are improving. But that’s not the point. I need to do bit more treatment and maybe stop for a little while. Also, to find the right balance between competing and finding the moments to stop and to try to play as long as possible.”

The former World No. 1 ended by talking about his goal for the future, along with expressing love for Indian Wells. “If I am able to plan the right way my calendar and to follow my calendar, I really can’t ask for anything more. That’s my goal. I’m here, I am super happy to be at Indian Wells now. I don’t know what’s gonna happen but enjoying every single day here and let’s see,” he said.