Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will miss this year’s Wimbledon.
Nadal, a two-time champion, could retire from tennis this year — meaning fans may have seen him compete at the All England Club for the last time.
A big factor in Nadal’s decision was the fact that the Olympic Games in July and August will be played on clay, and he does not think his body will be able to withstand the switch to grass and then back again.
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On Wednesday afternoon, Nadal, who has suffered terribly with injuries over the last couple of years, wrote on X: “During my post match press conference at Roland Garros I was asked about my summer calendar and since then I have been practicing on clay. It was announced yesterday that I will play at the summer Olympics in Paris, my last Olympics.
“With this goal, we believe that the best for my body is not to change surface and keep playing on clay until then. It’s for this reason that I will miss playing at the Championships this year at Wimbledon. I am saddened not to be able to live this year the great atmosphere of that amazing event that will always be in my heart, and be with all the British fans that always gave me great support. I will miss you all.”
Nadal also confirmed that he will play the relatively low-level clay event in Bastad, Sweden, the week after Wimbledon as a warm-up for the Olympics, which takes place at Roland Garros in Paris — where he has won the French Open a record 14 times.
Nadal is planning to play singles at the Olympics, as well as the doubles event with this year’s Roland Garros champion Carlos Alcaraz. Nadal is a former Olympic gold medallist in both singles and doubles.
The expectation was that Nadal would retire at some point this year, but last month he said: “Don’t assume that”, when it was put to him that the 2024 French Open would be his last. Nadal did add there is a “big, big chance” that would be the case, meaning his Roland Garros swansong could come at the Olympics.
After that, he has committed to playing September’s Laver Cup, and could appear for Spain in the Davis Cup finals in November. Prior to those two events is the US Open, the final Grand Slam of the year where Nadal is a four-time champion.
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