Rafael Nadal reveals he "would have been fine without" having a child in honest admission

Rafael Nadal opened up about his son with his wife, María Francisca Perello, earlier this year and made an honest confession.

The 22-times Grand Slam champion has had a challenging 2023 season as he has been off the courts throughout the year, with his last competitive appearance dating back to January when he suffered a defeat in the second round of the Australian Open.

However, away from the tennis world, Nadal experienced the blessing of welcoming his first child, Rafael Nadal Jr., with his wife María Francisca Perello. Thus, the period of Nadal's injury coincided with the presence of his son at home.

The former world No. 1 expressed the joy he feels in having his son during such a difficult time in his career:

"I have always taken things well. But in that sense, of course having a child at home who is also the first is always special, because of course it makes you happy in many moments,” Nadal said in an interview with Agencia EFE.

"But I think that I would have been fine without it too, because I have accepted and tolerated it well throughout my life. But without a doubt it helps and gives me happiness," 14-tiimes French Open champion added.

On the other hand, recently Rafael Nadal's fans received some good news regarding his comeback, though not directly from the Spanish tennis star. The director of the Australian Open, Craig Tiley, announced that Nadal would be in Melbourne to compete in the tournament he previously won in 2009 and 2022.

The 37-year-old athlete reacted to Tiley's announcement and refrained from confirming his participation in the tournament, leaving it open-ended:

"It was a bit daring. I have a very good relationship with him and I understand his excitement and also that of the Australian Open, which is surely less than the excitement I have about going there. But from there to saying that I am going to be at the Australian Open seems very complicated to say today," he said.

"In fact, I don't know and I'm working to try to recover. Therefore, my way of understanding my moment is that I do not need dates, but rather I need to simply work day by day with enthusiasm and with the right mentality to try to recover," he added.