Tennis veteran Rafael Nadal admitted that every match he plays at his favorite Roland-Garros could well be his last as he has faced troubles with his foot in the recent past. Nadal had to battle for four hours and 23 minutes against Felix Auger-Aliassime in the Round of 16 clash and he will face another tough challenge in the quarterfinal against defending champion, Novak Djokovic.
Nadal didn’t have the ideal preparation for French Open as he could play a handful of matches due to his injury woes. The Spaniard is going to turn 36 this week and he hinted that he could retire from the game if the injury trouble continues.
Post-match, the 21-time Grand Slam winner told reporters, “I am in the quarter-finals of Roland-Garros. “I am just enjoying the fact I am here for one more year. “Being honest, every match that I play here I do not know if it will be the last match here in Roland-Garros in my tennis career. That is my situation now.
“I went through a tough process again with my foot. I do not know what will happen in the near future with my career, so I am just trying to enjoy and fight as much as I can to keep living the dream.”
Nadal is the King of Clay and he has won Roland-Garros on 13 occasions. The southpaw has a 109-3 record in Paris and he will look to be at his best against Djokovic. However, the Serbian had a 30-28 advantage in a head-to-head contest against Rafael Nadal.
Nadal feels Djokovic is going to be the favorite against him but his coach Carlos Moya thinks otherwise.
Moya said while talking to ATPTour.com, “No. For me, on clay Rafa is always favorite, even when he retires (laughs). Of course, I’m part of the team and it’s difficult for me not to be biased. We always expect the best of Nadal and I think he’ll be at his best tomorrow so that he can win. It’s a very tough match, but we believe Rafa is ready.”
Nadal and Djokovic will face each other in what is expected to be an epic clash at Phillipe-Chartier court on Tuesday night.
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