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Rafael Nadal Can’t Turn 2016 Around After Wimbledon And Olympics, Even Without Meeting Novak Djokovic Or Roger Federer

By Jenny Cox
Published on: 07:12 PST, Sep 5, 2016

Rafael Nadal can’t seem to make 2016 work in his favor. The former world number one has been campaigning to get his 15th Grand Slam singles title, but he can’t seem to make the matches work in his favor.

At this year’s US Open, Rafael Nadal lost to Lucas Pouille in an epic five setter, which means that he has to reserve his Grand Slam dreams for next year. He has been suffering from his injuries, which is the reason why he skipped out on this year’s French Open and Wimbledon.

He managed to get his act together for Rio Olympics, but he lost to Juan Del Potro in the earlier rounds.

“Having already stunned Novak Djokovic in this tournament, del Potro advanced to the gold-medal match by beating Nadal, 5-7, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5),” reports Washington Post. “Del Potro advanced to face Andy Murray on his second match point in the tiebreak, because winning the first would not have been right for this epic match.”

When a journalist asked the Spaniard whether pressure was part of his failure to advance to the next round at US Open 2016, he was very salty in his response.

“After winning 14 and being in semi-finals a lot of times, you feel that’s pressure?” Rafael Nadal scoffed according to Eurosport Asia. “I answered you. I’m 30 years old; after having the career that I have, is not a question of pressure.”

“In terms of energy, in terms of motivation, I was great,” he said, as he went on to describe the game from his perspective. “In terms of tennis, I need more. I needed to serve better in some moments. I needed to create more pain on the opponent with my shots, no? That was something that I didn’t make it today.”

Even without meeting his biggest rivals, Novak Djokovic or Roger Federer, the 30-year-old tennis player had trouble playing at his best. It looks like he has to return to his training camp to figure out how he can play at the level he used to.

Many celebrities were present at the match, which made the loss even more painful for the Spaniard.

When Nadal was at his best, no one, not even Roger Federer, could challenge him. He was dominant on the court, managing shot after shot that baffled the best male tennis players in the world.

But injuries sidelined him when he got to the top of his career. They have kept him out of competition for months, and when he returned, he was not the same.

“My wrist is not perfect. My wrist needs more time,” the Spaniard said in an interview right before the start of Rio Olympics. “If it was a ‘normal’ tournament on the circuit, I wouldn’t be here. My wrist is not perfect. It isn’t 100 percent. There’s only one chance every four years to experience an Olympic Games. It’s something unforgettable. I missed the last one in London, so I didn’t want to miss this one.”

Taking time off from tennis has been terrible for his career, but a blessing in disguise for his love life. When he does not compete in international tournaments, he often spends time with his long-time girlfriend, Xisca Perello, who usually shies away from the spotlight.

“Tennis ace Rafael Nadal was taking his mind off his ailment on Saturday as he soaked up the sun in Formentera, Spain with his long-term girlfriend Xisca Perello, 28,” reports Daily Mail. “Off the court, Rafael showed off his impressive form on a yacht, celebrating his 30th birthday in style with friends, instead of aggravating his sports injury.”

Do you think Rafael Nadal will get a break in 2017? Let us know in the comments below!

[Photo by Alex Brandon/AP Images]

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