Nadal about the back problems: “We are not waiting for a wonder. We hope the treatment we try will help”
Rafael Nadal, the current second-ranked player in the ATP world rankings, faced some back problems in late January this year. Nadal was forced to cancel his first-round group stage ATP Cup final against Alex de Minaur of Australia shortly before starting the Australian Open-2021.
The Spanish tennis player withdrew from the match less than two hours before it started. He tweeted his back had been bothering him, and he and his teammates were taking no chances, although he hoped to be fit again by Thursday, February 4.
Fortunately, the athlete’s hopes came true – he could be at the hard courts in the city of Melbourne, where he planned to fight for the title of one of the Grand Slam tournaments, which has a prize fund of over $61 million. However, a back injury began to bother him again in his second-round match against American tennis player Michael Mmoh.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion managed to finish the match in his favour this time with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 win. But in his short interview, he commented on the back problems he was having, as already stated, at the end of January 2021.
As it turned out, the whole point was that the match against the 177th-ranked player in the world was not that difficult, thanks to which the starting problems didn’t increase into something more serious. According to the Spaniard, the match’s outcome could have been very different if he had to make more effort.
Nadal said his back problem is not under control at the moment. He continues to do his best on the court and tries just to go match by match. It was vital for him to spend less time on the court, even though time is obviously running out. The Spaniard has admitted he has been in pain for 18 to 19 days, and he knows that unless he and his team can find a way to fix it, it will be complicated for the tennis player to reach his goal on the Australian courts.
“The dynamic cannot be described as satisfactory. We have tried different procedures, and tomorrow will be an important day because we will try to find a solution with new options. If they don’t work, I will be on the verge because the third round is more intense. With all due respect to Mmoh, I didn’t need much effort today, so I was able to go on without too much inconvenience with a softened slice serve,”
Rafael explained.
The athlete also admitted he could handle the serve in a comfortable, not very nerve-wracking match like today. However, he knows that it will not be enough in the next ones. In his opinion, it’s essential to make some progress to compete in the third round.
“I have a lot of communication with Angel Ruiz-Cotorro and the local medical team. We are not waiting for a wonder. We are waiting for the treatment we try will help, as there is a chance it will solve the problem.”
The Spaniard will fight Cameron Norrie for a place in the 1/8 finals. In this situation, one can only hope that the treatment planned by the team of the 20-time Grand Slam champion will help him, thanks to which he will show his full potential on the Melbourne courts.