“The King of Clay” as he is fondly called has had a terrific start to 2022. Rafael Nadal was on a 20-match winning streak that recently ended at the BNP Paribas Open final in a monumental upset by Taylor Fritz.
Nadal returned to Spain following the BNP Paribas Open final and underwent medical tests. The reports have come out and they are not very encouraging. It was revealed the 21-time Grand Slam champion is suffering from a “stress crack” in his left rib—likely ruling him out of action for the next four to six weeks.
This comes as a huge blow for the Spaniard and his numerous fans who were enjoying their idol’s best start to a season in his career. They will now have to wait for some time to see him back in action.
Roger Federer is currently rehabilitating after undergoing knee surgery last year. He has been sidelined for over eight months now. Novak Djokovic has had his share of struggles. He was deported from Australia prior to the Australian Open due to his stand against vaccination.
The three “GOATs” of the Tennis world are going through a rough patch. Fans, however, have belief in their strong characters and are hopeful that all of them will be able to bounce back in style.
Nadal withdrew from the Miami Open to monitor his chronic foot injury. His Roland Garros participation now hangs in the balance. The 35-year old is a 13 time French Open winner.
“What I will do is be patient and work hard after my recovery.” – Rafael Nadal has his recovery plans already in place
It’s been a difficult week for Rafael Nadal. His fairy-tale run ended abruptly against Taylor Fritz but that’s part and parcel of sports. What is more concerning is his health condition.
“This is not good news and I did not expect this,” Nadal said in a statement to Marca, a Spanish-language publication. “I am devastated and sad because after such a good start of the season, I reached a very important part of the year with very good sensations and good results. But hey, I’ve always had that fighting and overcoming spirit and what I will do is be patient and work hard after my recovery. Once again I would like to thank everyone for their support.“
Speaking to Radiogaceta, Nadal’s physician Dr. Angel Ruiz Cotorro elaborated on Nadal’s recovery process, mentioning that they will try to ensure that the Mallorcan recovers sooner than the expected timeframe of 4-6 weeks.
“We’re going to adapt the work in function of the pain,” Dr. Cotorro said. “For now, the priority is to remove the pain. Once the pain’s removed we’ll be working as much as we can. With this in mind & the evolution it has, we’ll see if we can shorten the time…4-6 weeks is quite logical.”
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