Nadal: "I am not burned out or tired, my body does not respond as I need"

Making his intention to bid farewell as a professional player definitive, Rafa Nadal talks to the media at the Six Kings Slam 2024. The Spaniard explains in detail and clearly how he came to the decision to retire, with no turning back and no chance of giving it another try, as well as pointing out the main reason why he does not want to continue trying in the sport of tennis.

Do you feel your end in tennis approaching?

"I don't feel it, I have accepted that this is coming to an end. I know it. In the end, the decision is more than made. I said last year that this would probably be my last year, and it will be. I just announced it a little later. People were expecting me to announce it before Roland Garros. I took the necessary time, in a decision that is a change in my life from what I have been doing for the last 30 years, because my tennis life does not start when I turn professional, it starts much earlier. To take a new direction in your life, you have to be sure, not make a decision based on what others tell you or what you might hear. It's something you have to be sure of," Rafa Nadal explained in a press conference.

"When I have been convinced of it, I have conveyed it. The Davis Cup is going to be exciting, no doubt, it will be my last event, representing my country. Then, just to be clear, I will be on the team because my captain has considered it that way. I will try to prepare myself in the best possible way, but obviously, I will not be playing my match if the captain does not see me as having more chances than my teammate. Just because I am going to retire does not mean I have to play an individual match. I will do so if I am better prepared than my teammates. I have the responsibility to represent Spain. This is not my retirement, it is the Davis Cup, which is far ahead of my farewell. If I am not ready, I will not take on something that is not my task."

Your love for tennis has not changed

"I have postponed my decision a bit longer. They were going to hold farewell ceremonies for me in Rome and Paris, but I decided not to have them because I had no need to force myself into anything. I wanted to give myself the time I considered necessary to see how my body evolved after a difficult operation like the one I had in the hip. It's a very simple matter, I am not burned out or tired of my sport. My body does not respond to me as I need it to in order to compensate me for continuing to do what I do, but I am happy, I enjoy playing tennis.

I am not able to do it continuously at the level and standards that compensate and motivate me. To come to that conclusion, I had to let some time pass and I think it was something I needed. I am not going to retire from something I have been doing all my life and that I enjoy doing with the doubt of waiting a little longer. Today, I am convinced of it."

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Nadal: "No estoy quemado ni cansado, mi cuerpo no me responde como necesito"