Rafael Nadal undergoes surgery two weeks after French Open withdrawal as Spaniard seeks answers

The announcement on the surgery came two weeks after Nadal withdrew from the French Open and revealed that 2024 could possibly be his final year in the sport.

Rafael Nadal on Saturday announced that he is undergoing an arthroscopic surgery to examine his left psoas muscle which has been the reason behind his long absence from the sport. The procedure is being conducted in Barcelona by Dr. Philippon, Dr. Vilaró and Dr. Ruiz-Cotorro as Nadal looks for a solution pertaining to his possible return to tennis later this year.

Spain's Rafael Nadal reacts during a press conference(REUTERS)

Nadal has played only four matches in 2023. He played two for Spain in the inaugural edition of the United Cup and two in Australian Open where he suffered a shock second-round exit. It was during that match when Nadal had injured his hip for which he initially felt that a month of recovery period would be enough. But after missing the hard-court masters in Indian Wells and Miami, the Spaniard withdrew from the entire clay-court season as well including the French Open, where he has won 14 titles.

The announcement on the surgery came two weeks after he withdrew from the French Open and revealed that 2024 could possibly be his final year in the sport. During the press conference, held his Mallorcan academy, Nadal, who celebrates his 37th birthday today, admitted that he intends to stay away from the court and give ample time to recovery ahead of his final year in professional tennis.

"That would be my objective, to try to stop to face the last year of my sports career with the guarantees of being able to enjoy it," he said.

He added: "And I am aware that if I continue playing at this moment, I do not think that this can happen next year and I want to give myself the chance of this happening."

The surgery could eventually leave Nadal with a concrete answer on the extent of the injury and whether it could be a permanent solution for it whoch could in turn possibly extend his career and change his plans to go beyond 2024.