"Why do I keep 'torturing' myself after all I've accomplished? Because I love what I do" - Rafael Nadal on his 2022 comeback

Rafael Nadal, the 20-time Major title winner, beat Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori in straight sets in the semi-finals of the Melbourne Summer Set on Saturday. Nadal reached his first ATP final since last year's Italian Open where he will face first-time finalist Maxime Cressy.

The Spaniard is the favorite to win the 89th title of his career on Sunday. He is also all set to participate at the Australian Open next week for the 17th time in his career.

During his post-match interview on the court, Nadal insisted that his passion for the game was the primary reason behind his comeback. The Spaniard, who suffered a serious foot injury last year, also claimed he intends to enjoy every moment of his career knowing it may not "last forever." He said:

"Why do I keep 'torturing' myself after all I've accomplished? Because I love what I do. I can't live without my passion, tennis. I know it won't last forever, but I'm going to enjoy it as much as I can."

Nadal has been hitting top gear at the Melbourne Summer Set 2022 - his first pro tournament since the Citi Open in August last year. The Spaniard, however, didn't have smooth sailing during his last-four encounter against Ruusuvuori.

He was forced to stave off two break points in the opening set. However, after that, he was on song as he comfortably won the first set 6-4, breaking Ruusuvuori in the 10th game of the match.

A similar trend followed in the second set as both players held until 4-3, before Nadal broke his Finnish opponent's serve for the second time in the match.

The Spaniard eventually registered a 6-4, 7-5 victory to reach the final.

"My body is still holding... even if the tennis is not perfect" - Rafael Nadal

Nadal also expressed happiness at his body holding up well at the tournament so far.

"Let's see tomorrow. After a while... my body is still holding... even if the tennis is not perfect, I went through this process a couple of times in my career, need to be patient," Nadal said.

The 20-time Major winner stressed he was still playing because he loved the sport. He also acknowledged just how "lucky" he was to have made a career out of his hobby.

"I just love what I'm doing, you know... I feel passionate about the sport. I feel like a very lucky person that I can live from one of my hobbies - tennis. I know it isn't forever, not a job you're gonna do for 15 years but I still want to enjoy it as much as I can," Nadal said.

Speaking to the press after the match, Nadal expressed gratitude at making yet another final on the ATP tour. The Spaniard also asserted that even though he needed to fine-tune his game, he still felt he had displayed a "positive attitude" during the week in Melbourne.

"To be back in a final of the tour is great. Of course I need to do a lot of things better on court, but the only thing that I am not missing is that positive attitude; don't get frustrated when things are not going the way I wanted," he said.