Fourteen-time champion Rafael Nadal has cast serious doubt on whether he will play the French Open again after suffering his earliest exit ever at Roland-Garros. This year’s Olympic Games will be played at the home of the claycourt major, so Nadal will be back for that – assuming his battle-weary body lets him – but there is every chance he has contested his last match at his favourite tournament. Rafael Nadal remains unsure if he will return to Roland-Garros next year.
Credit: Getty Images Nadal conceded as much after Alex Zverev played the party-pooper in a 6-3, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3 first-round triumph across three-plus hours under Roland-Garros’ new retractable roof as the German bids to win his maiden grand slam title. “It’s difficult for me to talk. I don’t know [if] it’s going to be the last time that I’m going to be here in front of all of you, honestly.
I am not 100 per cent sure,” Nadal said. “But if it’s the last time, I enjoyed it. The crowd have been amazing during the whole week of preparation, and the feelings that I have today are difficult to describe in words, but for me, it’s so special to feel the love of the people the way that I felt in the place that I love the most.
“It’s difficult to say what’s going on in the future. It’s a big percentage that I will not be back playing here at Roland-Garros, but I can say 100 per cent I enjoy a lot playing here. “I am travelling with family, and I am having fun, and the body is feeling a.