The 22-time Major champion did not have much time to celebrate his 14th Roland Garros crown. Nadal underwent a couple of radiofrequency treatments in Barcelona and stepped on the grass court at home in Mallorca. The Spaniard is doing his best to recover his troubled left foot and prepare for Wimbledon.
Nadal has been training on grass for the last couple of days, and he shared the court with Feliciano Lopez on Friday, looking good and hoping to get ready for the All England Club. Rafa claimed the second Australian Open crown at the beginning of the year and delivered his 14th Roland Garros trophy to improve his tally to 22 Major titles.
Nadal is a two-time Wimbledon champion from 2008 and 2010, playing in a couple more finals and skipping the most prestigious tennis event in 2004, 2009, 2016 and 2021 due to various injuries.
Rafael Nadal trains ahead of Wimbledon.
Rafa made his Wimbledon debut in 2003 after just turning 17 and scored two victories to become one of the youngest players in the third round.
The Spaniard played in five consecutive Wimbledon finals between 2006 and 2011 before losing ground between 2012 and 2017 after failing to reach the quarter-final! Nadal raised his level at Wimbledon in 2018, beating five rivals for his first semi-final in seven years.
Novak Djokovic halted Nadal in an epic five sets and five hours and 15 minutes of a two-day battle! A year later, Rafa lost one set en route to another Wimbledon semi-final, where he stood no chance against Roger Federer. Standing half away from a calendar Grand Slam, Rafa will seek the 23rd Major crown in London if his foot allows him to compete and endure the best-of-five sets efforts.
After digging deep against Felix Auger-Aliassime, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev, Rafa enjoyed a relaxed day at the office in the Roland Garros final. He defeated the first-time Major winner Casper Ruud 6-3, 6-3, 6-0 in two hours and 18 minutes to write history books.
Ruud had his chances, but it was insufficient to challenge the greatest clay-courter ever. Rafa pushed the rival’s backhand to the limits and grabbed eight breaks from 16 opportunities. The Spaniard tamed his strokes nicely and forged a massive advantage in the mid-range and the most extended exchanges to sail towards the finish line.