Rafael Nadal tipped to play into 2025 based on recent announcement

According to Patrick Mouratoglou, Nadal will definitely keep playing. Here is why.
Rafael Nadal at the French Open
Rafael Nadal at the French Open / Aurelien Meunier/GettyImages
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Tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou does very few things where he is not certain of himself. That might come across as arrogant for some, and simply because Mouratoglou is fairly confident that he is correct about what he speaks, that does not make him right. In a recent comment about Rafael Nadal, though, tennis fans likely hope Mouratoglou is correct.

Nadal recently played the French Open and though he lost in the first round to Alexander Zverev, he played well enough to defeat many other players. Zverev was just a bad draw in the opening round. The Spaniard has not been as consistently great on grass courts as he has on clay. He also has been open about his love to play for Spain at the Olympics.

That last part is important because Nadal recently took to social media to announce he would not be playing at Wimbledon this year. Instead, he will focus on getting ready for the Olympics by playing in the Nordea Open in Bastad, Sweden. That tournament is a clay-court event. The Olympics will be played at the same facility that the French Open normally is which means Nadal will be playing on the clay of Paris once again.

Patrick Mouratoglou believes Rafael Nadal could play into 2025

Mouratoglou believes there could be a greater meaning to Nadal skipping Wimbledon. In fact, according to the coach, missing Wimbledon means Rafael Nadal will be playing professional tennis into 2025.

Speaking with Tennis Majors, Mouratoglou said, "The fact that he decides not to go to Wimbledon is also a strong sign that he wants to win the Olympics and that he thinks he can and that it is not his farewell year, going to every tournament to say goodbye. Otherwise, he would go to Wimbledon."

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Of course, that is also the coach's opinion and not fact. Nadal continues to say he cannot predict the future and he is unsure when he will retire. That might come in two months or that could be at some point next year. If he is fit enough and playing well, why retire?

The Spanish great has had an inconsistent year so far in 2024. He has missed many tournaments, and he has not come close to reaching a final. However, he played well enough at Roland Garros to imply he could still be a threat to win tournaments. If he does well at the Olympics, what is to keep Nadal from playing well into 2025?

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