Nadal surprised the tennis world when he introduced his withdrawal from the French Open final week. The 36-year-old has continued to battle with a psoas harm he picked up in January, and can now spend a number of months away from the tennis court docket.

The 22-time Major champion additionally stated he'll attempt to return pain-free in 2024, for what he expects to be his final season on the tour. “My idea is to try and say goodbye to all the important tournaments for me in my career,” Nadal stated during a press conference at his Mallorcan academy.

With the Spaniard now on the sidelines for the foreseeable future, McEnroe has assessed Nadal’s possibilities throughout his farewell tour and questioned whether or not he can return to his greatest. “It’s unfortunate obviously but it does open the door and I think it's inevitable,” the American informed Eurosport.

“They say Father Time wins every time, and that's what's happened here. I'm sure that Rafa did everything he could to try to play and this is not the way he wants it to end so that's why he's talked about playing next yea

The seven-time Major champion also brought up Murray, who announced his retirement at the 2019 Australian Open before undergoing hip resurfacing surgery and returning to competition. He continued: “Whatever Rafa wants to do is something that we should respect and any player…you watch Murray play, he's not the same player that he was and not nearly as highly ranked, but he wants to go out on his own terms and I'm sure it'll be the same with Rafa.”

But the retired professional nonetheless refused to rule Nadal out of successful subsequent 12 months’s French Open given his document in Paris. “I would never say that he couldn't win at Roland-Garros. Anyone that's done what he's done, as long as he stepped foot on a court would have a great chance,” McEnroe stated.

And he made one other comparability, including: “He reminds me a lot of Lebron James. LeBron James is a little bit older and is part of a team, but I think he proved he was still a fantastic player.

“But you know, maybe at the end of those [season-end] games he got a little tired because too much was expected from him. And at some point, that's what's gonna happen to Rafa, it happens to everybody, you're going to be asking too much.

“So it's hard to know, at this point. By the time he [Nadal] plays next year, if he plays, he'd be 38 years old during the tournament.”