"Rafael Nadal is not coming back to play the 1st or 2nd round, but to win tournaments" - Boris Becker

Former World No. 1 Boris Becker believes that Rafael Nadal will return to action only if he thinks he has a chance of winning more titles.

Nadal has been out of action since suffering a hip injury during his second-round defeat to Mackenzie McDonald at the Australian Open earlier this year. After missing out on several key tournaments, the Spaniard announced in a press conference before the French Open that he was taking a break from tennis to rest and recuperate.

Nadal has since undergone hip surgery, with a five-month timeline suggested for his recovery. While he was initially looking to make his comeback at the Davis Cup Finals, that has been pushed back after Spain got knocked out of the tournament after losing to the Czech Republic and Serbia.

While it remains unclear when, or if, Nadal will return to action, German tennis legend Becker has opined that the 37-year-old will return to the sport only if he believes he can win more titles.

“Nadal is a role model for everyone. Millions of fans around the world want to see him back on the tennis court and not in the press conference, where he declares that he may not be able to play again,” he said on Eurosport Germany's podcast Das Gelbe vom Ball.

“I also believe that he would never come back if he doesn't see a chance for himself. So, he's not coming back to play the first or second round, but to win tournaments,” he added.

Nadal has 92 ATP singles titles to his name, including 22 Grand Slams. He is one of only two men to have achieved the Career Golden Slam (four Majors plus an Olympic gold medal).

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Boris Becker: “Rafael Nadal's ultimate goal will possibly be the 2024 Olympics in Paris”

Rafael Nadal will be hoping to play in the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Boris Becker further stated that Rafael Nadal will be hoping to take part in the Paris Olympics next year.

Tennis at the 2024 Olympics is scheduled to run from July 27 to August 4 and will be played at Stade Roland Garros, the venue of the French Open. Nadal is very familiar with the claycourts there, having won a record 14 titles on the red dirt in the French capital.

“His ultimate goal will always be Paris, will possibly be the [2024] Olympics in Paris, which will be played on clay at Roland Garros. But for that he needs the legendary match practice, and he can only get that at tournaments,” Becker opined.

“So it's hard to get started. He'll get a bit of a kicking at first, but then we'll go into February - if he stays healthy - and March and April, when it's played on clay. Then he'll have had his ten, 15 matches - and I would never bet against Rafael Nadal on clay,” he added.