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Rafael Nadal fears he could be forced into a premature retirement due to a foot injury, despite overcoming fierce rival Novak Djokovic to reach the French Open semi-finals.
The Spaniard beat Djokovic in four sets at the tournament he has dominated for years but conceded afterwards that it may even be his last appearance at Roland Garros.
Nadal has a chronic foot problem that he has been suffering through since 2005. It was eventually diagnosed with Mueller-Weiss Syndrome and affects a bone in the foot that is integral to movement.
Last year he was forced to sit out six months because of the problem and thinks if a fix cannot be found, retirement is a real possibility.
‘I’m very clear on the fact that I don’t know what can happen (and it can be (his) last French Open),’ he said on Tuesday night.
‘You know what I have with my foot and if we don’t find solutions, it will be difficult. For the moment we haven’t so I give myself a chance.
‘I don’t know what will happen after this tournament. I’m very clear about that, I don’t have to hide anything at my age.
‘I have what I have in my foot and if we don’t find a solution it’s difficult for me. At the moment we haven’t found a solution. Playing the semi-finals gives me a lot of energy for me and we’ll see how it goes down here (left foot).
