After two months of absence and the discovery of paternity, October 8, Rafael Nadal is preparing to return to classes on Wednesday during the Masters 1000 of Paris-Bercy. The 36-year-old Spaniard will meet the winner of this Tuesday’s duel between Roberto Bautista Agut and Tommy Paul. The master of Roland-Garros, 14 times crowned Porte d’Auteuil but still in search of a first title at Bercy, can end the year on the throne of the ATP, currently occupied by Carlos Alcaraz.
But to hear it, this quest does not really excite the current dolphin of his young compatriot. “I’m not going to fight to be number 1 anymore, I’ve done that in the past, I’ve achieved that many times in my career, I’ve been very happy and very proud of it, but at some point I’m of my career where I no longer fight for that “he dropped this Tuesday at a press conference.
“When I played, I played well”
The Mallorcan wants to be lucid in the face of the passage of time: “I’ve played maybe 10 tournaments this year, it’s difficult to be number 1 in these conditions. But I’m happy to be in this position: it means that when I played, I played well. But how long will it last, when his friend Roger Federer, admittedly five years older, has recently retired? Nadal prefers not to come forward.
“With an aging body like mine, it’s easier to know how you’re doing when you go to a series of tournaments, he says. When you come back from a period without competition, it’s difficult to know how your body will react, how you’re going to play. »
“It was an extraordinary year for the results but also a complicated year for the injuries, confides the Spaniard. It is obvious that I arrive in a situation which makes it difficult to think about the title this week. But I’m happy to be back on the circuit and playing. I have two tournaments left to try and finish on a good note. “Before returning to Manacor to find his wife and Rafael Jr, who he” misses “, by his own admission.