"I prefer to lose the final and have a new foot that allows me to be happier in life" - Rafael Nadal after reaching French Open final

Rafael Nadal spelled out the extent of his chronic injury after his semifinal win over Alexander Zverev at the 2022 French Open on Friday.

The Spaniard bluntly declared that he would prefer to have a new, pain-free leg over a 14th French Open title if given a choice.

Nadal suffers from a degenerative chronic foot condition called the Mueller-Weiss syndrome, which has been bothering him since the start of his career. However, the has pain escalated in the past year or so after the 36-year-old aggravated the condition at last year's French Open.

In some post-match quotes compiled by Marca, Nadal lamented his condition, even going to the length of admitting that he would choose a pain-free life over a record-extending 22nd Major title.

"I prefer to lose the final and have a new foot that allows me to be happier in my day to day life," Rafael Nadal said. "Winning is nice and fills you with momentary joy. But life goes on and it is the most important thing. I have a life ahead of me and I would like to play amateur sports with my friends and right now this is unknown."

Having said that, the 36-year-old acknowledged his efforts in reaching a record-extending 14th final at Roland Garros.

"Being in a final is incredible and an important success. It means a lot to be in the final," he added.

But the 13-time champion made it clear that he would never have wanted to reach the final due to an opponent's injury.

Alexander Zverev rolled his ankle after taking a nasty tumble deep into the second set, with Nadal leading 7-6(8), 6-6. The German was taken off the court in a wheelchair, and he later returned on crutches and signaled his desire to retire from the match.

"It's a dream to be in the final, but I didn't want to be this way," said the Spaniard. "I'm human and I feel sorry for him."

"These were the slowest conditions because it was very humid" - Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal [right] comforts Alexander Zverev after the latter's fall

Rafael Nadal and Alexander Zverev played their semifinal clash under a closed roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier as rain ravaged Paris. Playing under a closed roof increased the humidity, thus slowing down the conditions.

Nadal pointed to that fact, adding that it was difficult to generate too much topspin and bounce. He believes he was fortunate to win the first set since Zverev had four straight set points during the tie-break.

"These were the slowest conditions because it was very humid. In addition, there was the and it was difficult to create effects on the ball," said the 13-time champion. "The first set that I won was a miracle, but I have been fighting all the time. I have suffered with the humidity, but I think he does too."

Turning his attention to his physical condition, Nadal stressed that he continues to operate under "limitations." He also revealed that he had fluctuations in his energy levels during his match against Zverev.

"You have to be realistic and I assume my current limitations. I haven't trained for three months to endure depending on what things," he said. "I stayed in the match as best I could, but it's true that I was in a better position at the end of the set. I had more energy that for a while, it was gone."