World number one Rafa Nadal decided to end his season before the conclusion of the ATP Finals, he lost his inaugural match 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 to David Goffin and after the match he announced that he pulled out of the tournament. The Spaniard had said before the tournament that the situation of his troublesome knee was "not perfect" but he was hoping that it would hold until the end of the ATP Finals. He described his performance against Goffin as a "miracle" because he wasn't expecting to pull off a three-set match over two hours.
"I am off and the season is finished. I am really not ready to play," Nadal said. "I really fought a lot during the match knowing probably it was a big chance that it would be the last match of the season. It's about the pain and I cannot hold with enough power to keep playing." Despite the result, Nadal is guaranteed to finish the season as wold number one. "The good thing is the injury is nothing new," Nadal added. "We hope to have the right rest, the right work and try to be ready for the beginning of the next season."
Nadal had pulled out of the Paris Masters to protect his knee and the way he fought against Goffin is another demonstration of his respect for the sport and incredible determination. "It was a tough fight until the end. Rafa is one of the strongest players mentally on the tour," Goffin said after the match. "I am so happy to finally find the key to win this match. It is so special to do it here. I don't know how I picked myself up after losing the four match points. I had no regrets and I just wanted to keep going and try to enjoy every point."
Rafa Nadal is 3/1 at Bet365 to win the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament in 2018.
Markotik
6 years ago
This same injury keeps coming back. Aside from the clay court part of the season, it is very difficult for Nadal to keep a high level of play on hard courts for longer periods of time. He withdrew from Paris and now barely managed to finish the match against Goffin.
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sharpe
6 years ago
This season was rough in injury aspect for many of the top players and now for Rafa too. It's to say the least strange players group that we seeing at the ATP finals and of course half of those wouldn't be even there without so many injuries of the top players recently. The number of tournaments that top players participate...
This season was rough in injury aspect for many of the top players and now for Rafa too. It's to say the least strange players group that we seeing at the ATP finals and of course half of those wouldn't be even there without so many injuries of the top players recently. The number of tournaments that top players participate should be limited I think or that would become a regular issue for many of them, but of course everyone should decide for himself, in many cases cash prizes are too huge to be refused...
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