NEW DELHI: Rafael Nadalthe Spanish tennis icon, has set his sights on the Paris Olympics, where he aims to secure a third gold medal.
However, following his straight-sets loss to Portugal’s Nuno Borges in the Bastad clay-court final on Sunday, Nadal acknowledged that his performance was subpar.
“The level was so far from what it should be. Probably the energy too,” said Nadal.
“It has been a long week with long matches.Even if my body, I don’t have damage, that’s important – but mentally and physically, I am not used to playing four days in a row and playing long matches.”
Nadal made his return to competitive tennis at the Olympics, following a disappointing first-round loss at the French Open in May.
The Spaniard opted to bypass Wimbledoninstead concentrating on honing his skills on clay courts in preparation for the Olympic Games.
The Olympics are being held at Roland Garros, a venue where Nadal has experienced unparalleled success, having secured 14 of his impressive 22 Grand Slam titles on the Parisian clay.
As he steps onto the familiar courts, Nadal will be driven by the ambition to expand his Olympic medal collection.
As well as singles, in Paris he will team up with French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz.
“I played the final, that’s positive. I was able to play long matches without having an injury, that’s good,” added Nadal of his week in Sweden.
Nadal has played just six tournaments in 2024 due to injury while his ranking has slumped to 261.
“In some way I felt that I arrived here practising much better than what I played on the tournament during the whole week. That’s something that I am not satisfied with,” he explained.
“I arrived here with the feeling that I was playing a good level and I was not able to show that during the whole week. That is something that I am not happy with.
“Anyway it’s a final, so I can’t say it’s a bad result because it’s the first final since a long time ago. But I was not able to feel myself comfortable enough during the whole week to be satisfied with the week of tennis that I played.”
However, following his straight-sets loss to Portugal’s Nuno Borges in the Bastad clay-court final on Sunday, Nadal acknowledged that his performance was subpar.
“The level was so far from what it should be. Probably the energy too,” said Nadal.
“It has been a long week with long matches.Even if my body, I don’t have damage, that’s important – but mentally and physically, I am not used to playing four days in a row and playing long matches.”
Nadal made his return to competitive tennis at the Olympics, following a disappointing first-round loss at the French Open in May.
The Spaniard opted to bypass Wimbledoninstead concentrating on honing his skills on clay courts in preparation for the Olympic Games.
The Olympics are being held at Roland Garros, a venue where Nadal has experienced unparalleled success, having secured 14 of his impressive 22 Grand Slam titles on the Parisian clay.
As he steps onto the familiar courts, Nadal will be driven by the ambition to expand his Olympic medal collection.
As well as singles, in Paris he will team up with French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz.
“I played the final, that’s positive. I was able to play long matches without having an injury, that’s good,” added Nadal of his week in Sweden.
Nadal has played just six tournaments in 2024 due to injury while his ranking has slumped to 261.
“In some way I felt that I arrived here practising much better than what I played on the tournament during the whole week. That’s something that I am not satisfied with,” he explained.
“I arrived here with the feeling that I was playing a good level and I was not able to show that during the whole week. That is something that I am not happy with.
“Anyway it’s a final, so I can’t say it’s a bad result because it’s the first final since a long time ago. But I was not able to feel myself comfortable enough during the whole week to be satisfied with the week of tennis that I played.”
