Rafael Nadal Not Yet Ready to Travel for U.S. Open

“I am confident they will make the right decision in the right moment to make sure if the tournament is played it will be in safe circumstances,” Nadal said. “If not, in my opinion, it doesn’t make sense.”

Later on Thursday, in an interview with the Eurosport network, Nadal said it would be “tough and strange” to play without spectators.

“If the situation is not allowing to play with fans, like everybody, I will adapt,” he said. “But of course I hope that the situation improves, and I really hope we will be able to play with fans very, very soon because tennis and sport without the fans loses almost every single thing.”

On the videoconference, Nadal was asked if he was concerned about the U.S. Open because of the “current political climate” in the United States, which has been the scene of mass demonstrations after the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis.

“The situation has been very ugly for the last couple of days; when you see all this stuff, it’s terrible,” Nadal said. “I really hope that the country is able to control all this terrible situation that a lot of cities are living and be able to come back to a positive life respecting everybody and of course trying to live with peace. That’s the main thing.”

Nadal said it was too early to decide on whether he would play in both the U.S. Open and the French Open, which are likely to be separated by just a two-week gap if they are played at all.

“We will make decisions thinking about what we believe will be the best for my tennis, the best for my future and the best for my body,” he said.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/04/sports/tennis/rafael-nadal.html