Davis Cup captain says there is a chance when it comes to Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal is done. We know this. He has stated as much, and his last event will be the Davis Cup. Or will it? The truth is that the Spaniard might already be finished if he does not feel healthy enough to participate in the Davis Cup at the end of November. Sure, maybe he plays in doubles with Carlos Alcaraz, but ideally, he would play singles.

No matter when the all-time great finishes his career, we can be assured that he chose when to stop playing. Injuries have affected almost all of his last two years playing, but he didn't submit to his body breaking down. He chose to keep fighting even when he probably understood he had little chance of winning a tournament.

The last tournament he will have won is likely the 2022 French Open. That was the last of his 14 titles at Roland Garros, a number that is very unlikely to ever be matched. He will definitely not play the French Open again, and he lost in the first round in 2024 after a tough draw having to play Alexander Zverev.

There is still a real chance that Rafael Nadal plays singles at the Davis Cup

There should be some doubt that Nadal does not play in the Davis Cup. He managed to participate in the Six Kings Slam, but he did not win a set in two matches. He was outclassed by Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic. This isn't because Nadal is a bad player, but because he is an old and oft-injured one.

Still, the Spanish Davis Cup captain, David Ferrer, told Marca in an interview recently that Nadal will play in the Davis Cup should he feel mentally ready to play. The sad part is that Nadal knows this will be his final tournament, and should want to play as much as he has wanted to play any event, so one would expect him to be mentally prepared. Otherwise, Nadal's last real event would be losing in the second round of the Paris Olympics.

Ferrer said, "I have a lot of confidence in Rafa because I’ve spent my entire career with him and I know he’s honest about whether he sees himself capable of competing or not. My idea after talking to him is that he’s ready to play...If Nadal is training at a good level and is physically fit, he is an option, of course...because of Rafa, you can always wait a little longer. But I think I’ll have it pretty clear two or three days before (the event)."

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