NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 04: Rafael Nadal of Spain gets his foot taped up by trainer Clay Sniteman during his match against David Nalbandian of Argentina during Day Seven of the 2011 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 4, 2011 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Chris Trotman/Getty Images)
Rafael Nadal recently revealed that he played with a numb foot en route to his 14th French Open title – similar to what happened in Wimbledon 2008
The 2022 French Open might go down as Nadal’s most impressive win at the tournament. The Spaniard overcame quite the disadvantage en route to his 14th French Open title. But, beyond just him fighting through an injury, Nadal’s title win feels more meaningful because the end might be on the horizon for the all-time great.
After his straight-set victory over Casper Ruud in Sunday’s final, Nadal revealed that he “played with no feeling on the foot” after he got an injection to address his lingering foot injury.
This is quite a deja-vu moment for tennis fans across the world. Back in 2008, a young Nadal overcame all the odds to defeat Roger Federer in a historic Wimbledon final. Later on, he went on to reveal that he played with a numb foot not just in the final but even in the matches leading to it.
Rafael Nadal has been struggling in his professional career with a recurring foot problem for years and he is yet to find a solution to it. In scientific terms, it’s a disease referred to as ‘Mueller – Weiss Syndrome’.
Muller-Weiss syndrome is a degenerative disease and represents a dysplasia of the scaphoid, deformation of one of the bones located in the central part of the foot. Due to its symptoms, it is a difficult disease to diagnose so much so that it is now part of the ‘World Day of Rare Diseases.
Back in 2005, Rafael Nadal first encountered a problem related to this disease. Back then, Nadal said – “The day after becoming champion in Madrid I felt like lame and after careful analysis, they told me that I had a problem at the scaphoid. In that period many doctors did not find solutions but in the end, they diagnosed me with this disease.”
During his career, Rafael Nadal has done the impossible, winning 21 Grand Slams (none like him yet) including 13 Roland Garros, rewriting entire pages of tennis history. But Rafa has had to deal with a lot of injuries throughout his glorious career. However, 17 years since it was first diagnosed, the Mueller-Weiss syndromes are still very much a part of Nadal’s career.
More Tennis news
Follow our dedicated Tennis page for instant Tennis news and updates