“He’s back to where he wanted to be” – Corretja calls for calm over Nadal injury

Former world No 2 Alex Corretja says that Rafael Nadal will have taken plenty of confidence from his return to action in Brisbane – despite suffering another injury that will now keep him out of the Australian Open.

“It’s certainly a setback that could happen,” Corretja said to Eurosport.

“After so many months without competing, it is logical that muscularly you may feel some discomfort. The important thing is that it is not in the place where the big injury was made – that would be something to take into account and would perhaps be more worrying.

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“I believe at the moment that if Rafa recovers, it doesn’t have to affect him mentally. He has realised that his level has grown, that he is back to more or less where he wanted to be and now the only thing we have to hope is that he can recover, play a few more days and return to compete in the tournaments that he wants.”

Corretja – It’s a shame

He added that, naturally, Nadal will already be thinking about how to prepare fully for Roland-Garros.

“I think for clay it’s maybe where his problems would have less impact and where he’s going to feel the best,” he said, adding: “Let’s see what happens, but it’s clear that for all the people who had created this expectation it’s a shame.”

Nadal has long hinted that 2024 may be his final season on the tour after a series of injuries ended his 2023 campaign prematurely.

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