Former world number one Rafael Nadal, currently ranked at number four in the world has not played competitive tennis due to an ongoing wrist injury, which he announced in his press conference following his second round match at the French Open against Facundo Bagnis.

Nadal, a former three-time winner of the Rogers Cup, his participation at the Canadian Masters 1,000 event is in doubt and the 2008 Olympic Gold Medallist who hasn't played at the Olympic since then as he missed the event in London in 2012 due to a knee injury, will be desperate to compete in Rio.

"I don't know if I will play in Toronto yet, I'm going day by day, being ready is a priority. How slowly because I have worked very hard physically in order to make my comeback less complicated, but I am still recovering."

Nadal acknowledges he's not one of the favourites

Nadal acknowledges that he will not be one of the favourites in the singles event in Rio, "In Rio, I won't be the favourite in singles after my injury break. In doubles and mixed doubles, it is a different story. Anyway, I am very willing to practice and compete, and skipping Olympics is not in my mind."

The world number four talks about the Zika virus

Nadal played at the Rio Open this year and he spoke about the Zika virus, as plenty of big names athletes, have withdrawn from the Olympics and the comments that some of them have said negatively about the Zika virus are unnecessary."They are exaggerating, I have been in Rio in February and did not have any problems."  

Nadal holding the Rogers Cup trophy in 2013 (Photo by Matthew Stockman / Source : Getty Images)
Nadal holding the Rogers Cup trophy in 2013 (Photo by Matthew Stockman / Source : Getty Images)

On Djokovic's loss

The nine-time French Open champion lastly spoke about Novak Djokovic's shock loss at Wimbledon, "You can't win 30 Grand Slam matches in a row, so I'm not surprised after his Wimbledon upset. After having won the French Open, he must have felt mentally exhausted. You have only to admire what he did and praise him."

Toni Nadal talks about Nadal's fitness

Rafa's Uncle Toni Nadal spoke about his nephew's fitness to ttdeporte.com, "Playing Toronto is in our plans, but if there's even a 1 percent risk we will not play. The tests that were done in Barcelona highlighted how the injury has been treated. Now we need to get used to the practice sessions and then to the competition again."

Uncle Toni was also surprised about Djokovic's defeat to Sam Querrey at Wimbledon, "Yes because he is dominating in the Tour and is one of the best ever. For the others, this loss gives some chances for the future."

Finally, Toni Nadal heaped praise on his nephew Rafa's academy that has finally come to fruition, "His dream has come true. As his uncle, I am happy to see his academy being active and that kids are practicing, we hope it pays off. It's not easy to make them Grand Slam champions, but we will try to prepare them well hoping that in the future they will achieve their goals of playing professionally."

VAVEL Logo
About the author