Rafael Nadal Won’t Play French Open; Says 2024 Will Be His Final Season

Rafael Nadal at the French Open Tennis Championships in 2019
Rafael Nadal at the French Open Tennis Championships in 2019. Photo by Ella Ling/BPI/Shutterstock (10266531ad)

Rafael Nadal announced on Thursday that he wouldn’t take part in this year’s French Open due to a hip injury. The Spanish tennis player also said that he will likely retire after the 2024 tennis season.

Nadal didn’t play since January when he was eliminated in the second round of the Australian Open by Mackenzie McDonald. The 37-year-old player was visibly bothered by a hip injury from which he still hasn’t recovered four months later.

Speaking with Spanish media this week, Nadal said that he wanted to play at French Open but that his body wasn’t ready for the challenge.

“Even though your head wants to keep going, your body says this is as far it goes,” Nadal told the reporters.

Nadal expects that he won’t be ready to play again for at least several months but does intend to make one final run next year.

“You never know how things will turn out, but my intention is that next year will be my last year,” he added.

Rafael Nadal is currently tied with Novak Djokovic for most Grand Slam titles with 22. More than half of those titles (14) came at French Open, where he has played every year since 2018 and has a 112-3 record. He was forced to withdraw at the 2016 French Open due to a wrist injury before the third round.

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