Rafael Nadal makes grand entrance into Court Philippe-Chatrier for possible last time in his career ahead of Alexander Zverev clash in French Open 1R

Rafael Nadal entered the Court Philippe-Chatrier to a warm welcome from the fans at his 2024 French Open campaign opener. He is facing Alexander Zverev in a blockbuster first-round clash.

37-year-old Nadal is still unsure if this year's Roland Garros will be his last. During a recent press conference, he explained that he was hoping to avoid this question in the future, and, as of now, he is still unclear on the answer.

When it comes to recent form, Nadal's claycourt season has not had a lot of highs. He participated in the Barcelona Open, the Madrid Open, and the Italian Open. His best performance was a Round of 16 finish in Madrid where he lost to Jiri Lehecka.

In Madrid, Nadal announced that this year's appearance was his last at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. In Italy, however, the Spaniard refused to make any such admissions. Similarly, he kept an air of uncertainty around his French Open appearance as well.

When it comes to the Paris Major, the record 14-time winner has no dearth of fans. A packed Court Philippe-Chatrier welcomed Nadal as he made a grand entrance into the stadium to play possibly his last match at the French Open.

Watch how Nadal made a grand entrance into the stadium for his first-round clash against Zverev:

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Rafael Nadal is postponing retirement as he is still enjoying playing and traveling with his family

Rafael Nadal at the Madrid Open.

Rafael Nadal was in a jolly mood at his pre-tournament press conference and had several funny moments. However, when it came to the serious question of retirement and if this was his last time in Paris, he said he was still unsure.

“Maybe the last one, maybe not... I hope to be clear. I don’t want to create a big confusion, but I’m enjoying what I am doing. Sorry, but I am feeling competitive in the practices,” Nadal said during the press conference.

However, the Spaniard mentioned that he does not want to completely close the door on his career as he continues to enjoy taking to the court and traveling with his family.

“First, I am enjoying playing. Second, I am travelling with the family. They are enjoying."

"I am enjoying sharing all this process with them. And third, I was not able to explore yet the proper way how I will be able to play being in more or less healthy conditions again, playing without limitation,” he added.

Nadal's wife Maria Francisca Perello, and son were present in Madrid and Rome to cheer him on.