February 14, (THEWILL) – Tennis superstar Rafael Nadal has cast doubt on his participation in the Qatar Open in Doha as he continues his recovery from a small muscle tear sustained at the Australian Open.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion was forced to withdraw from the year’s first major tournament in Melbourne, cutting short his return after missing most of 2023 with a lingering hip injury.
Speaking in an interview on Wednesday, the Spaniard admitted it will be “very tight” for him to be ready for the ATP 250 event in Doha, which begins on February 19. While reluctant to rule it out completely, Nadal conceded: “Every blow I take, every injury, is a setback not only in tennis and physically but also mentally.”
The 37-year-old was more optimistic about competing at Indian Wells in March, stating he is “100 per cent confident” of featuring in what he called a “very special tournament”. With retirement potentially looming, Nadal suggested the Masters 1000 could be his last appearance there and made clear his determination to play.
For now, the legendary left-hander’s priority remains regaining full fitness in time for the clay season where he has dominated for so long. Nadal holds a scarcely believable 112-3 record at the French Open, which he has won more times than any other player in history. “My main goal is to try to get to the clay season as healthy as possible,” he reiterated.
After managing just two matches in his comeback event in Brisbane, Nadal felt pain during a quarter-final loss to Jordan Thompson. He will be hoping for better fortunes in 2024 as he looks to add to his impressive haul of 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
