Rafael Nadal: 'I don't make my calendar 6 months in advance but...'

The Tokyo 2021 Olympics will kick off in late July and run through early August. However, many players are not sure if they will play in the Olympics, considering the current situation. The coronavirus pandemic is not over yet and most of them, including Serena Williams and Rafael Nadal, are not ready to take a risk right now. In a recent interview, world number 3 Rafael Nadal revealed that he is not sure if he will play in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics or not. The Asturian mentioned that they are important to him but it is not the right time. Furthermore, he stated that he surely would have played there if the situation had been ideal. “I don't know if I will play in the Olympics. In the normal world, there would be no doubt, you all know how important it is to me, "Nadal said in the interview. As of now, Nadal has won two Olympic gold medals. He won the first in 2008 in the singles category while he won the second in 2016 in the doubles category with his partner Marc López.

Rafael Nadal on his schedule 

While speaking to the media on Tuesday ahead of the start of his Italian Open campaign, Rafael Nadal discussed a variety of topics - right from his current form to his schedule for the rest of the year. "Under normal conditions, the Olympic Games have always been a high priority for me," Rafael Nadal said. "However, under the current circumstances, though obviously Olympic Games are still in a privileged position, things are constantly changing." Rafael Nadal went on to assert that the whole world has been ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic over the last one year. He also pointed out that no one knows whether the global health situation will improve or worsen in the coming months. "The reality is that we've been in a pandemic for more than a year and the only thing I'm saying is that decisions are taken more short-term than long-term," Nadal said. :Nowadays, I don't make my calendar 6 months in advance, but just some weeks in advance." Last year, the total prize money for the French Open took a significant cut because of the coronavirus pandemic. Compared to the 2019 edition, the prize money for the 2020 edition came down to €38 million, a reduction of 10.93%. Until a few weeks back, the tournament officials had kept the total prize money for 2021 French Open unchanged to last year’s levels. However, as per recent reports, there will be a slight decrease in the prize money for the upcoming Grand Slam.

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3w2NT8I