Rafael Nadal (Photo : Getty Images)
Rafael Nadal guaranteed he will be competing at the 2016 Rio Olympics in Brazil in August, but the King of Clay is uncertain of his tennis form heading into the quadrennial sporting event.
Nadal, who is being sidelined from Wimbledon by a left wrist injury suffered last month, provided an update on his physical conditions as he gears up to return in the tennis scene.
The 30-year-old Mallorcan, who is scheduled to play at the Rogers Cup in Toronto next month, insisted his wrist is getting better and guaranteed an appearance at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. However, the 14-time Grand Slam winner confessed uncertainty over his playing form ahead of the grandest sporting event in the world.
"I will be there and that's the most important thing, but I do not know how my level of tennis would be. The wrist is better, it was an unfortunate injury because things were going well and I was enjoying the competition, which I could not do in 2015," Nadal said in an event in Madrid, reports Tennis World USA.
There will be ample time for Nadal to recuperate from his latest setback, with his next competition still a few weeks away, but likewise, there probably won't be any rush for the world No. 4 to force himself in winning titles, especially with Novak Djokovic expected to play at the Rogers Cup.
However, Nadal has been in consistent in stressing the importance of playing at Rio, especially after missing out at the last Olympic event in London four years ago.
"In Beijing 2008 I probably lived the two most beautiful weeks of my career. Not being in London, in 2012 was the toughest decision of my tennis life, because you never know what can happen in four years and you do not know if you will be able to play the next Olympics," Nadal said.
Nadal will be Spain's flag-bearer in the Olympic Games and is set to play singles, men's doubles and mixed doubles with Marc Lopez and French Open winner Gabrine Muguruza, respectively. After winning a Gold Medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nadal skipped London in 2012 due to a knee problem, which he described as one of the toughest decisions in his life and tennis career.
