Rafael Nadal, who has just turned 14e Time at Roland-Garros, reassured on Friday that he “intended to try” to play at the Wimbledon tournament, which starts on June 27, when new treatment eased the pain in his left foot.
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“My intention is to try and play at Wimbledon,” the Spanish tennis player told reporters on his island of Mallorca in the Balearic archipelago, where he completed his first grass training session on Monday.
“This week of training tells me there might be opportunities,” added Rafael Nadal, who will travel to London on Monday for training and playing some exhibition games.
For years, Nadal has suffered from Müller-Weiss Syndrome, a degenerative and incurable disease characterized by the deformation of one of the bones of the foot.
The player with 22 Grand Slam titles has revealed he had to play Roland-Garros with an anesthetized foot but was unwilling to repeat the experience at Wimbledon, a tournament he won twice and attended in 2008 and 2010 he did not participate in 2021.
He began “pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) therapy” two days after his triumph at Roland-Garros, which “numbs the nerves in the area of the injury he’s suffering from,” according to his spokesman.
The player said on Friday note the “changes” caused by this treatment.
“I haven’t boxed in a week. I’m happy,” he said, “it has reduced the pain that was preventing me from” supporting the foot.
He confirms that he will be a father
Nadal announced on Friday that he is becoming a father for the first time, confirming reports from the Spanish press.
“I’m going to be a father, I’m not used to talking about my private life because I think I’m already exposed enough in my professional life,” said the record holder of victories in Grand Slam tournaments with satisfaction, during a press conference in Palma de Mallorca.
Rumors of the tennis player’s wife, Mery Perelló’s, pregnancy have been circulating since Roland Garros, but they multiplied this week after Spanish People magazine Hola claimed to have received confirmation.
Nadal preferred not to say more, recalling that he and his entourage preferred to live in discretion.
“I don’t see any change in my professional life” due to this imminent birth, added the tennis player, who confirmed to reporters his intention to play in the Wimbledon tournament, which starts on June 27.