Nadal, faced with an unknown challenge: "He will need rhythm and matches, but if anyone can skip the processes it is him"

It will be a strange sensation for all tennis fans, as well as for himself, linked to high competition for two decades.. Rafael Nadal's temporary withdrawal and his intention to return at the end of the year raise several questions. How will he handle stepping aside, stop doing what he's been doing for so long? What difficulties will he have to face when he gets back on the slopes? «In most cases, athletes who stop voluntarily do so because they are psychologically saturated.. This is not the case of Rafa, who has pushed his body to the limit and needs to regenerate it,” says Álex Corretja, one of the four interlocutors consulted by this newspaper.

Nadal announced last Thursday that he will not play Roland Garros and that he will stop training in the coming months. He suffered a psoas injury last January at the Australian Open, from which he has not been able to recover. He also said that 2024 will be his last year in active. “He doesn't want to pass up the opportunity to try it, because it would taste bad for him not to have tried it.”. He will need rhythm and games, but if there is someone who can skip the processes, it is him: he can take 10 steps in one, “adds Corretja, former number two in the world and today an analyst and television commentator.

Despite long periods of inactivity throughout his career due to injuries, Nadal will never have gone such a long time without playing.. “He has shown that he has great emotional balance and that in crisis situations he displays great resilience,” says Josefina Cutillas, a psychologist specializing in sports who has worked, among others, with Carlos Alcaraz.

If you have grounds for optimism both from the tennis and mental point of view, the biggest problem will be in the physical response. «The body gives you windows, but stopping for a year will not give you a second youth. Everything can be expected from him, but it will be very difficult for him to return, “explains a prestigious traumatologist who prefers to remain anonymous..

Vicente Calvo, Feliciano López's physical trainer and Fernando Verdasco's right-hand man in the best moments of his career, believes that “he will carry out a period of adaptation with very specific training sessions”. «It will not be able to be exhibited as it has been done up to now. The normal thing is that he doses himself for Roland Garros and selects the surfaces well. When you are turning years old, you have to work with greater caution and progression ».

emotional buffering

The winner of 22 Grand Slam titles showed serenity by announcing that for the first time since 2005, when he won the first of his 14 titles, he will not be at Roland Garros. He will take advantage of this truce to enjoy things that he has had to give up for twenty years. «He knows how to reverse the situation and he will enrich himself with other activities, which will provide him with emotional cushioning.. In your case, in addition, you can assume paternity in another way, which involves a series of daily challenges. The brain of high-performance athletes has learned to have a very high level of activation and seeks experiences that generate the same stimuli and the same benefits”, reflects Cutillas.

«No one has taken his body to the extreme as Nadal has done, because of his way of playing, his dedication and his capacity for sacrifice.. His 37 years are not the same as those of other players. Something similar happens with Djokovic and Federer, tennis players who played Grand Slam or Masters 1000 finals every week, “continues Corretja.

The traumatologist consulted believes that “it is difficult to conjecture when you do not know exactly what is happening. The problem is why he has not healed in three or four months from a muscle injury. However, there are great athletes who managed to return successfully, such as Michael Jordan, Tom Brady or George Foreman.

With a total of 92 titles and 1068 matches won, Nadal will have to adapt to a new situation. He made it clear that he does not want to be “a troupe”, but it is likely that he is not up to his own legend either.. “You will control expectations. It is important to make a good diagnosis when you are going to return, so as not to fall into comparisons that generate anxiety, to establish differences with the concept you have of yourself, “explains Cutillas.

With Roger Federer already retired and with Nadal heading for the starting gate, the Big Three vanishes. «You can still expect a good version of Djokovic. It still has gasoline in the tank, “says Corretja.