King of Clay Rafael Nadal made a massive revelation about his fitness after he progressed through to the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open on Thursday.
Nadal, who was returning to tennis after an injury layoff, lasting nearly one-and-a-half months, needed more than three hours to get past qualifier David Goffin 6-3, 5-7, 7-6(9), in what was his second match of the tournament.
At times, the Majorcan looked like he was struggling with his movement on the court in the Spanish capital as Goffin matched him shot for shot. At one point, especially in the third set tiebreak, the Belgian appeared likely to upset the applecart.
But Nadal, being the fighter he is, was relentless and eventually succeeded in advancing to the last 8 at the event, which he has won five times in the past.
However, the former World No. 1 later disclosed that he was experiencing pain in one of his feet and that's the reason he couldn't perform to his abilities in the match.
"My foot hurts and I get weak," Nadal said during a press conference after his victory. "This is part of my day-to-day life." "The injury is chronic and incurable. That's the bad thing about not having finished the game earlier. Tomorrow I could wake up with more problems than usual and I have to accept that."
Despite his health concerns, Nadal would have to recover quickly as he will face his countryman Carlos Alcaraz for a place in the semifinals on Friday.
Late last month, Alcaraz became the first teenager since Nadal to occupy a spot in the top-10 of the ATP rankings.
Earlier in February, the 19-year-old had made history, becoming the youngest ever to win an ATP 500 competition after he captured the Rio Open title.