The news of the withdrawal of Rafa Nadal He not only left the tennis world cold, but also the sports world in general. It was not a decision taken in haste, but the result of a long period of reflection during which he surrounded himself with his team, his family and his friends to face the announcement. most difficult of his career.
With the withdrawal a little more digested, Tony Nadal He gave an interview to ‘Eurosport’ in which he revealed how Rafa spoke about it to those close to him.
“We had a family conversation and Rafa informed us that on Thursday, in a few hours, a video of him would be released announcing the withdrawal. In the group, we are all older brothers and nephews, so I opted for a somewhat dry message: ‘Congratulations, you’ve had a good career.’ The others took a little longer, but I always say things in advance, which makes me less lazy,” said Manacorí’s uncle and former coach.
Of course, Toni explained that this was by no means the retirement the Balearic player dreamed of: “To Rafa He would have liked to have another good round on claybut that means winning, at least playing at a good level in these tournaments.
“I don’t think he retired the way he would have liked.“I always told him not to complain about anything, because life has always treated us much better than we expected,” he added.
Like Federer, Nadal challenged his body to try to get back to his best after an injury spiral, but he couldn’t overcome that barrier.
“Looking back, I can now understand why he delayed this announcement for so long, it was because he still hoped to continue giving his best version, until the day he lost this belief and retired“, he explained.
“There comes a time when the body no longer responds, when forcing your body means too much suffering. The same thing happened to Roger Federer, He tried for a few years, then left.“, he settled.
