Money Is Not Everything:  Carlos Alcaraz Rejected $350.8 Million Contract Renewal Offer …

Money Is Not Everything:  Carlos Alcaraz Rejected $250.8 Million Contract Renewal Offer …

Carlos Alcaraz refuses to discuss Rafael Nadal retirement after last-minute injury call | Tennis | Sport

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Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz doesn’t want to imagine the tour without Rafael Nadal (Image: Getty)

Carlos Alcaraz chose not to discuss Rafael Nadal’s potential retirement after the 37-year-old confirmed he was likely playing his final Madrid Open. The world No. 3 said he wasn’t ready to imagine professional tennis without the 22-time Grand Slam champion. Alcaraz himself made a winning return to the Madrid Open, where he only decided to compete one day before his opening match after suffering a forearm injury.

 

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Nadal has been the talk of the tournament at the Madrid Open as he confessed that he was likely playing in his home tournament for the final time and chose to compete for personal reasons despite feeling hesitant on the court. The former world No. 1 has often hinted at the possibility that he will retire at the end of 2024.

 

As Madrid prepares to say farewell to the 37-year-old, Alcaraz was asked about the void Nadal will leave when he eventually ends his career. But the two-time Major winner didn’t want to think about it. “I don’t want to imagine it yet. Like every fan of Rafa and tennis, no one wants to imagine the circuit without Rafa,” he said after his opening win over Alexander Shevchenko.

 

“I want to enjoy him as much as possible, I know that’s what he wants and what excites him. He is working to be competitive, and every time he can do it I will be there to enjoy it. We don’t have to think about the life after tennis, we are going to live in the moment, try to watch him as many matches as possible and enjoy his tennis.”

 

Rafael Nadal believes that he is playing in his final Madrid Open (Image: Getty)

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Alcaraz himself has been battling some injury issues over the last few weeks as a right forearm issue forced him to pull out of the Monte-Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open. His 6-2 6-1 victory over Shevchenko marked his first match on the clay this season and his first outing since the Miami Open, where he lost in the quarter-final.

 

After sealing a convincing win, the 20-year-old confessed that he only made the call to compete one day before his first match. The two-time Madrid Open champion explained: “Yesterday was the moment when I decided that I can play. I didn’t pick up the racket again until Monday. I came without knowing what was going to happen, the intensity was increasing. Yesterday when I played a set with Medvedev, not noticing anything, I said I was ready to play. Until yesterday I was thinking about whethe

r to play or not.”

 

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