Roger Federer’s ex-coach shares Rafael Nadal surprise as he makes retirement wish | Tennis | Sport

Ljubicic knows exactly what it’s like to watch a great player be blighted by injury. Federer spent the last two years of his career battling a right knee problem and underwent three surgeries in 18 months before he finally gave in and retired at the 2022 Laver Cup.

Nadal now finds himself in a similar situation. The 38-year-old has been battling injury problems since mid-2022 and spent 12 months on the sidelines after hurting his hip at the 2023 Australian Open.

His comeback attempts have been thwarted by setbacks and, last week, he announced his impending retirement. Ahead of the Spaniard’s Davis Cup farewell, Ljubicic gave his verdict on the news.

“I’m surprised because I thought Roland Garros was probably the right time, the most logical place to stop,” the Croat said while attending the Festival dello Sport. “But I don’t know what he [Nadal] feels or why that was his decision.”

While Federer’s ex-coach thought it was more fitting for Nadal to hang up his racket at the French Open – where he is a 14-time champion – he knows what it’s like for a player to be forced by their body to stop.

The former world No. 3 continued: “I don’t think a player of this level – as I saw it with Federer – would retire, because he doesn’t want to play tennis anymore.

“He steps back because he probably feels that he cannot play at a level that is acceptable to him. When the future is not clear, it is not good to continue with this feeling, and it is logical to make a certain decision.

“I’ve always said it’s one thing, to decide to quit, that is the hardest thing.”

Federer ultimately chose to end his career at the Laver Cup, a team tournament he co-created in 2017. The Swiss star joined forces with Nadal in doubles for his farewell because he was too injured to play a professional singles match.

But Ljubicic hopes Nadal can have a competitive send-off in front of a home crowd in Malaga.

“We spoke a lot with Roger about this situation; then the moment comes where you have no choice because Roger wasn’t able to play a tournament and retire if he was competitive,” he added.

“But with Rafa, I hope to see him on the court in Spain and his last game [in front of] a home crowd to play. That would be very nice.”