A day after this news broke, Rafael Nadal was asked what his thoughts were on Djokovic’s situation.
“From my personal perspective, it’s very sad news,” Nadal said. “It’s always a shame when the best players of the world are not able to play a tournament because of injuries or because of different reasons. In this case, not having one of the best players of the history in the draw of Grand Slam is always an important miss, no?”
“As I said, tough for the fans, tough for the tournament,” Nadal added. “In my opinion, tough for the players, too, because we want to have the best field possible. But, in the other hand, I repeat what I said plenty of times: the sport in some ways is bigger than any player. I missed a lot of important events in my tennis career because of injuries, without a doubt. Last year I was not here. Two years ago I was not here. The tournament continues. The world of tennis keep going.”
“Without a doubt, Novak is one of the most important players of the last 20 years, the history of our sport,” Nadal said. “In a personal way I feel sorry for him that he’s not able to travel here.”
The two tennis players will compete together next month on Team Europe for the Laver Cup. It’s unknown whether Djokovic will play in any tournaments ahead of the Laver Cup.
Rafael Nadal Comments on Novak Djokovic’s U.S. Open Absence (msn.com)
“From my personal perspective, it’s very sad news,” Nadal said. “It’s always a shame when the best players of the world are not able to play a tournament because of injuries or because of different reasons. In this case, not having one of the best players of the history in the draw of Grand Slam is always an important miss, no?”
“As I said, tough for the fans, tough for the tournament,” Nadal added. “In my opinion, tough for the players, too, because we want to have the best field possible. But, in the other hand, I repeat what I said plenty of times: the sport in some ways is bigger than any player. I missed a lot of important events in my tennis career because of injuries, without a doubt. Last year I was not here. Two years ago I was not here. The tournament continues. The world of tennis keep going.”
“Without a doubt, Novak is one of the most important players of the last 20 years, the history of our sport,” Nadal said. “In a personal way I feel sorry for him that he’s not able to travel here.”
The two tennis players will compete together next month on Team Europe for the Laver Cup. It’s unknown whether Djokovic will play in any tournaments ahead of the Laver Cup.
Rafael Nadal Comments on Novak Djokovic’s U.S. Open Absence (msn.com)