Nadal vows not to push himself too hard, too soon: “I try not to repeat what happened in Brisbane”

In Madrid on Thursday, Rafael Nadal confirmed a new trend in his game: more than ever, he doesn’t want to strain his body. Absent since his attempted return to competition in Brisbane after a year out following hip surgery, he was back in action in Barcelona last week – and his second-round defeat there at the hands of Alex de Minaur demonstrated his current mindset. The Spaniard, battling abdominal issues that affect his serve and movement, didn’t want to force the issue and took his foot off the accelerator in the second set, losing 7-5, 6-1.

In his first match in Madrid, a walk in the park against Darwin Blanch, Nadal didn’t need to push himself too much to get through. He will undoubtedly need to be a little more on it against De Minaur in the next round for the Barcelona rematch.

But as he tries to regain full fitness in time to be competitive at Roland-Garros, Nadal is determined not to repeat what happened in Brisbane, when he pushed himself too far, too soon and picked up another injury that set back his recovery and has affected him ever since.

“Coming back is part of my tennis career,” said Nadal. “I’ve had a lot of injuries and I had to be back. In the past I was able to be back quickly very quickly, that’s why I was so competitive. Today is another story : I’ve had important injuries recently and I could not play for long periods. I’m not negative, I’m just realistic, exploring what can happen in the next coming weeks.

“Being able to win a pro match two consecutive weeks, I mean it’s relevant news for me. I try to not repeat what happened in Brisbane. I’ve played very little last year. A little mistake in my workload can lead to stop this process of exploring what I can do.”

Pushed too hard in Australia

In Brisbane, Nadal had looked strong in his first two matches and had match points in the third, before losing to Jordan Thompson. In hindsight, however, after a year out and having had surgery, the 37-year-old said he pushed himself too hard too soon.

“I’d like to be able to play week after week in Brisbane, Melbourne, Doha, Indian Wells, but it’s not possible since what happened in Brisbane,” he said. “Starting from scratch when your body has been used to the training regime I had in the past, it’s not possible.”

“In Australia, I was probably less physically fit than I was. I made mistakes, I pushed myself too hard.”

“Nadal: “I can’t give my 100 percent every day”

In an ideal world, and he knows it perfectly well, Nadal would love to be competitive in the tournaments he has won so often. But reality has caught up with him ever more quickly since the beginning of 2023 (and his injury at the Australian Open), and this year of 2024 looks more like a farewell tour than a final round of battles.

In the English portion of his press conference, he said he is currently nowhere near 100 percent. “I try to play at my 100 percent, but I can’t (be at) 100 percent every day. But I give my 100 percent every day. Most of the time (in his career), I was able to give my 100 percent of the 100 percent,” he said. “Today I’m able to give my 100 percent of sometimes 40 percent, sometimes 60 percent, sometimes 70 percent, and if I am able to raise this percentage day after day or week after week, why not in the future what can happen?”

He will certainly need to be close to 100 per cent when he faces De Minaur on Saturday.

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