Cyclists Pinot and Martin question Nadal's foot injections: "What Nadal has done would be impossible in cycling"

French riders Thibaut Pinot and Guillaume Martin have both questioned Rafael Nadal for his use of cortisone injections at the French Open.

Rafa Nadal won the French Open for the 14th time at Roland Garros on Sunday, but afterwards he stated:

"I played without feeling in my foot. I played with an injection in the nerve, and the foot was asleep, that's why I was able to play."

The Spaniard received several cortisone injections during the tournament to ensure he kept a lingering foot injury as pain-free as possible. Thibaut Pinot didn't seem too impressed by Nadal's admission, though, commenting: "Today's heroes..." accompanied by some emojis.

Interesting take but it would serve its purpose better had he actually typed out what he thought about instead of hiding behind emojis. Pressed by fellow Frenchman tennis player Eysseric, he finally typed it out:

“Why? Because I have my convictions, a way of seeing sport and sports performance differently than yours, maybe? My tweet (three words) which is causing so much reaction fell on Nadal but it could have been a golfer, horse rider, handballer, basketball player, fencer, rugby player, weightlifter, skier, footballer, surfer, cyclist, etc…"

Pinot's compatriot, Guillaume Martin, also questioned the ethics behind Nadal receiving multiple cortisone injections. Speaking to L'Equipe, Martin suggests the lengths Nadal has gone to to keep playing simply wouldn't be possible in cycling.:

"What Nadal has done would be impossible in cycling. And I think that's normal. If someone is sick or injured, they don't compete - that seems like common sense to me. First and foremost for the health of the athletes. I'm not sure the long-term injections will be good for Nadal's foot."