Rafael Nadal retirement verdict given as career relies on two things

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Rafael Nadal’s uncle and former coach has given his verdict on when he believes the world No 2 will end his career following Roger Federer’s recent retirement. Toni confirmed that his nephew would keep going despite some “problems” as he admitted that the end of Nadal’s career would likely hinge on his rivals and his own body.

Talk of retirement among the Big Four has been rife following the end of Federer’s 24-year career. The 41-year-old became the first of his generation of players to hang up his racket at the recent Laver Cup as he admitted he had to listen to his body after struggling with a right knee injury for the last two years.

Nadal is the obvious candidate to be the next of the Big Four to retire given his age and recent physical woes, dealing with a foot injury, a broken rib and an abdomen tear this year alone. But his uncle Toni has now put any imminent retirement fears to bed as he said the 22-time Major champion had not reached a point where his injuries would stop him playing.

Asked whether he had ever told Nadal to stop, Toni told AS: “Never. I think that, as long as you feel competitive and have the luck to continue winning… What you like is playing tennis, there will be time to stop. Of course, if one is suffering more than necessary, there comes a time when you say you’re leaving. But Rafael has not reached this situation.”

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While the former coach of the world No 2 admitted there had been several issues for Nadal to deal with in recent months, he said there was still no lack of motivation for the Spaniard. “It is true that he has had different problems and this affects you in the end, but the main thing is that he wants to play,” Toni added.

“To one who has that desire I would never tell him to stop. If Federer had had the chance to play, he would have told him to do so. I never remember the great players for his final stage. I don’t remember Seve or Tiger Woods when they played badly, I remember them when they played well, just like Federer or Rafael… There are people who are sometimes very demanding and want them to retire. No, as long as you can play and do what you like.”

And the current coach of Felix Auger-Aliassime also said that he thought Nadal’s eventual retirement would depend on the success of his rivals and whether his body eventually gave in when commenting on when he believed his nephew would finally call it a day “I think that as long as he feels he has a chance of winning, he will continue,” Toni said.

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“When he sees that he has no options, if he goes to a tournament and has no chance of winning, I don’t think he will play. In the end, he has won too much to fold badly.” Referencing Federer’s comeback in 2017, which saw him win three Grand Slam titles in the space of a year and return to world No 1 in 2018, he added: “Federer went five years without winning a Grand Slam, but he was there, he was doing semi-finals, finals… he knew he could win.

“In fact, after five years he won three more because he felt like he had options. That is what leads the way. How much time does Rafa have left? I don’t know, he will clearly depend on his rivals, on his body…”

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