Rafael Nadal was almost convinced that this would be his last season on the ATP professional circuit, he had fired in Barcelona and Madrid for the Spanish legend, but after several days of training and his first game in two years in Roland Garros, the panorama changed for the champion of 14 editions of the French tournament after proving that he could play without limitations, without suffering physical problems and compete once again with the best exponents of the discipline on the planet.
![Rafael Nadal](https://www.tennisworldusa.org/world/media/image150443.jpg)
Although he lost to Alexander Zverev, for Nadal it was a demonstration: He can still play in the tennis elite at the age of 38. This match against the number 4 in the world stopped a farewell that had been coordinated in Paris and the Spanish tennis player has not yet confirmed when he will say goodbye to professional activity, showing the possibility of playing in 2025.
The French coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, is one of those who believes that the Spaniard is still up for big wins after the duel held at Roland Garros with one of the best tennis players so far this season.
Rafael Nadal is working hard for the Olympics
Rafael Nadal is still working on clay to find his best version ahead of the 2024 Olympic Games, looking for the best possible way and will play the Bastad tournament to improve his competitive pace.
“Everyone thought it could be Rafa’s last game, he was no longer prepared to compete at this level, but all these claims are totally wrong.
What I saw was the opposite, I saw a player who now feels good, who knows he can still compete. I think the match with Zverev made him realize that he can return to the highest level, even if he lost in three sets.
![Rafael Nadal](https://www.tennisworldusa.org/world/media/image150250.jpg)
Given the short time he had to train and prepare, the quality of tennis he could produce was very high, but he lost due to lack of regularity, which is normal when it comes to a period of ups and downs,” the French coach told “Tennis Majors”.
“95% of the players would lose in a three-set match against this Rafa. Of course, he had bad luck with the draw, playing against Zverev in the first round, but if he had played against people other than Zverev, he would have won.”