After the duel with Alcaraz

Nadal: “As a fan, I will enjoy it …”

Rafael Nadal (left) believes Carlos Alcaraz has a great career ahead of him

(Bild: AFP/GETTY IMAGES/David Becker)

Rafael Nadal lost a tennis exhibition against Carlos Alcaraz in Las Vegas on Monday night by 6:3, 4:6 and 12:14 in a match tie-break. There will not be many more duels between the two top Spanish players on the ATP Tour due to Nadal's approaching career end.

"It's a good thing that I won't have to compete with him much as a player," said the 37-year-old afterwards. Nadal is making his comeback this week in Indian Wells, where Alcaraz is also playing.

Nadal emphasized that the future of Spanish tennis is in very good hands with Alcaraz. "As a fan, I will hopefully enjoy watching him for many years to come," said the veteran. Spain should be very happy to have such an up-and-coming top player. "He's an incredible player. He's only 20 and has already won two Grand Slam tournaments and many other important tournaments," Nadal said in praise.

Body no longer playing along
Alcaraz triumphed at the US Open in 2022 and at Wimbledon in 2023, as well as winning ten other tournaments at non-major level. In the world rankings, only the Serbian Novak Djokovic is ahead of the Spaniard. Like Nadal, Alcaraz was already at the top of the rankings. Nadal will not return to this position and is currently only number 652 in the world after years plagued by injury. As his body is no longer playing as well as he would like, 2024 is likely to be his last year on the tour. "That's the direction we're heading in at the moment," confirmed the 22-time Grand Slam tournament winner in recent days.

Rafael Nadal (left) believes Carlos Alcaraz has a great career ahead of him

(Bild: AFP/GETTY IMAGES/David Becker)

Nadal recently had to take a break for almost a year due to a complicated hip injury. He only returned to the tour in Australia in January, but was stopped by the next injury at the tournament in Brisbane after two victories. The result: no Australian Open, instead rest and rehab again. "Unfortunately, I wasn't able to complete the program I had planned," said the left-hander, who also had to cancel the tournament in Doha.

14 titles in Paris
But now he wants to get back into match practice at the Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells. Because the clay court season starting in April is what Nadal is still toiling for. "Whatever I still have left in me, I want to let it out during the clay court season," said the former world number one. His last big goals are the French Open and the Olympic Games, both of which will take place in his tennis living room at the Stade Roland Garros. The Court Philippe-Chatrier is where Nadal celebrated his greatest successes and where he became a legend.

He has won the title in Paris 14 times and a final triumph there would mean everything to him. But whether Nadal will really be able to perform over five winning sets for two weeks is still questionable. "I'd like to say adios when I'm doing well, when I'm competitive and having fun on the court," said Nadal in Las Vegas. His performance there in front of almost 10,000 spectators gave him confidence. Things went "better than expected" against Alcaraz. Now the primary goal in Indian Wells is to remain injury-free.

The three-time Indian Wells winner will make his first appearance on Thursday. It has not yet been decided against whom. It is also a comeback for Alcaraz, as he suffered an ankle injury in the first round match in Rio de Janeiro on February 20.