"I don't make unilateral decisions" - Rafael Nadal jokes about how fatherhood has impacted his life
Rafael Nadal completed his 2022 season with a bang, beating Casper Ruud in straight sets in his final group stage match at the ATP Finals. Having already crashed out of the tournament, the 22-time Grand Slam champion is looking forward to the off-season, or at least as little of it as he can enjoy before he has to play in exhibition tournaments.
First, the Spaniard is set to take part in events across Latin America in the final week of November, where he will play against Casper Ruud in singles and doubles alongside former US Open champion Gabriela Sabatini. After that, the Mallorcan will return home to spend some time with his family -- his wife Maria Francisca Perello and their newborn son Rafael.
The 36-year-old confirmed as much during his press conference in Turin, joking that he had no idea what would come after that. With the United Cup in Australia also on the southpaw's calendar, Nadal would have to leave home sooner than he would have liked.
The former World No. 1 admitted that at this point, he had no concrete plans for beginning the 2023 season, remarking that he was no longer in a position to make "unilateral decisions" about his life. However, he also added that he hoped to start playing by New Year's Day at the very least, provided all goes well until then.
"Going to be back home and try to enjoy little bit the fact that I will be home for a while, family and work. Well, work? For me is not work, is practice. Just practice, try to make the right plan to be able to stay healthy enough and to stay ready for the beginning of the next season. How early? I can't tell you yet because, as you can imagine now, my life changed a little bit. I don't make unilateral decisions. I need to check a little bit," Nadal said.
"If the United Cup starts 29th, I hope to be playing about 1st or 31st, 1st of January. 27th, I don't know. That's going to be the idea, if nothing goes wrong. You never know," he added.
The World No. 2 was also happy about the Latin American tour, commenting that it would help him get some much-needed match practice before the new season.
"In Latina America, I going to be able to play multiple matches against a great player like Casper, a couple of ones, then against Davila," Nadal said. "What I need today is spend hours on the court in a competitive level. That's going to help."
Rafael Nadal was all praise for the fans there, declaring that going to countries like Brazil and Argentina with such passionate tennis fans felt like recharging his batteries. While the 22-time Grand Slam champion was not sure it would be his last time professionally touring Latin America, he admitted that it would definitely be one of the last and was excited about the journey.
"At the same time every time that I played in Latino America, I charge the batteries of energy because the crowd there are so passionate. I enjoy the fact that I going to be playing there in front of them," he said. "I don't know if maybe last time in my professional tennis career being active. So excited about that. Probably going to be one of the last opportunities."
"Today I receive the prize for that practice of yesterday and that's it" - Rafael Nadal on his victory over Casper Ruud at the ATP Finals
During the press conference, Rafael Nadal also revealed that he was elated with his victory over Casper Ruud in his final match of the season, declaring that it was good to see himself be competitive against a "great" player.
The Spaniard further noted that he saw the win as a reward for all the hard practice he had put in in Turin, especially after back-to-back losses. The 35-year-old was happy he could go home with a better perspective now, as the victory almost wiped away the bad feeling he had after crashing out of the tournament early.
"At the end it's about finish the season with a victory. It's about see myself competitive against a great player with chances of victory. It's about to have the personal satisfaction that after a couple of very tough days, I went yesterday on the practice courts and I make a very good practice with the right attitude," Nadal said.
"Today I receive the prize for that practice of yesterday, and that's it. It's about come back home with the satisfaction that I gived my best till the last match. Now a victory, a perspective to be better and better," he added.