Rafael Nadal admitted he had a difficult time adjusting to the coronavirus-driven lockdown in the beginning but has adjusted himself over the past three weeks.
In an interview with the radio channel Cadena Cope, Nadal also revealed he thought it would take its own time for the situation to improve enough for tennis to be played like it was earlier.
Nadal said his struggles at the start of the quarantine was to do with the amount of suffering because of the coronavirus outbreak. He added he would find it tough to follow the news all day and it was only after a few days did he find his own way of handling things and got himself into a routine.
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He revealed:
“I came back from [the cancelled ATP Tour event at] Indian Wells on a Wednesday and that Saturday the state of alarm was official. It was a shock. Knowing what was happening in Italy, I knew it was coming to Spain.”
“In Indian Wells I was sleeping [at the home of] the tournament owner, who is a very connected person, and at his house I was prevented from hugging anyone and was keeping distance.”
Nadal admitted tennis, unlike football, involved a lot more travel and with the travel and tourism industry being the most hit at the moment, things don’t look very rosy for the sport.
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The world number two Nadal also said he wasn’t looking to second-guess when tennis would resume, and more focussed on maintaining his health at the moment.
He also said public health was the most important thing right now, tennis a distant second but if there could be a way they could play behind closed doors, he would be happy to be a part.
The Spaniard said:
“Health comes first. But if it would be possible to play behind closed doors, I would be very happy. I have talked many hours with Novak [Djokovic] to see how we can help our sport.”
Even Djokovic chatted on the issue with the same radio channel and said the decision to return to tennis by playing to empty stadium was one to be taken later. The situation right now, he said, “is bigger than our sport”.
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