Rafael Nadal once said that being physically prepared for a match meant being ready to “die on the court.” And for two decades, that was exactly what he did. At just 18 years of age, the Spaniard was diagnosed with Müller-Weiss syndrome, a rare condition that affects a small bone in the left foot. Doctors told him he might have to retire before his career even started. But he refused to accept that fate. Instead, the eventual 22-time Grand Slam champion defied the odds, adapted his game, and pushed his body to the limit. So how did he do it?

On March 11, Rafael Nadal appeared on Andy Roddick’s podcast, Served, where he opened up about his career, rivalries with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, the 2024 Paris Olympics, and what it took to keep coming back from injury.

“I came back from injury, things are feeling well now, so let’s practice, let’s prepare. So, in some way, I forget quickly what happened. I was able to go on court, practice with the intensity that I needed, and then I think I recovered the physical intensity quite fast. The tennis level was not a big issue for me most of the time,” Nadal said.

Injuries had always been part of the 38-year-old’s tennis journey. It all started with his foot, which forced him to wear customized shoes. But those shoes also altered his movement, putting extra strain on his knees and back. Over his career, he played 83 Grand Slams, missed 14 due to injuries, and won 22 of the 69 he competed in. Even with injuries, Nadal never backed down.

The Spaniard learned to live with the pain and kept pushing. “So you are able to live with that and go on court. You don’t feel, ‘Okay, maybe I have a limitation today,’ but most days, I don’t have that limitation. So you’re still believing, ‘Okay, I can keep fighting for the most important things,’” he further revealed.

Time and time again, the 14-time Roland Garros champion found a way to fight through the pain. At Indian Wells, he cracked a rib against Carlos Alcaraz and still won. At the French Open, he played with a numbed left foot and left Paris on crutches—with the trophy. At Wimbledon, he tore an abdominal muscle against Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinal but still won the match.

Nadal’s mindset never changed as he elaborated, “When you have limitations all the time, then you start feeling, ‘Okay, how do I beat this guy? How do I beat this other guy?’ You would either take risks that you wouldn’t normally take or make decisions you wouldn’t normally make. Exactly. And of course, a guy like me, who has been practicing all my career with very, very high intensity—that’s the way that I understand the sport, that’s the way that I enjoy the sport. So when I am not able to do that anymore, then, for me, it’s not that interesting anymore.”

What exactly was the moment when Nadal made the fateful call?

Rafael Nadal reveals the moment he knew “it’s over”

At the 2023 Australian Open, a second-round match against Mackenzie McDonald changed everything. Sprinting across the baseline for a forehand, Rafael Nadal felt a sharp pain in his hip. He lost the match and with it, his chance to defend his title at Melbourne Park.

For five months, he tried to avoid surgery, but there was no other option. The procedure was successful, but he missed the rest of the 2023 season. When he returned in 2024, he wasn’t the same. A muscle injury forced him to skip the Australian Open. The Spaniard played 16 matches during the clay season, searching for answers. But the writing was on the wall. He couldn’t glide across the court, and his serve was not the lethal weapon it used to be.

In the same podcast with Roddick, Nadal said, “Yeah, in some way, I’m a positive guy. Last year, of course, had been mentally tough. I went through some painful moments in terms of accepting things. During all this process, you go through like a mountain of emotions. It’s difficult to explain in words.”

He further added, “I was not able to move the way that I was used to move. So arrived a moment that after Olympics, I come back home and then say, okay, it’s over. I feel it.”

Nadal officially retired at the Davis Cup in Malaga at the Palacio de Deportes José María Martín Carpena in November 2024. Ever since, he has been enjoying life away from tennis, living with “little pain” and not picking up a racket anymore. A career defined by resilience had finally reached its end. What’s your favorite Rafael Nadal moment? Let us know in the comments below.