Rafael Nadal on his doctor: "Without him, I would never have been able to win some tournaments"

Rafael Nadal recently spoke at length about the importance of his doctor Angel Ruiz Cotorro in his career. Nadal claimed that it would have been impossible for him to win some of the tournaments he did, if he hadn't had the invaluable medical assistance provided by Ruiz Cotorro.

Dr. Angel Ruiz Cotorro is a well-known sports physician who has been Rafael Nadal's long-time personal doctor. In addition to Nadal, the physician has also treated famous tennis players like Juan Martin del Potro and Arantxa Sanchez Vicario.

Rafael Nadal has been one of the more unfortunate players on tour in terms of injuries suffered. The Spaniard has had to spend a significant part of his career under medical supervision, and he pointed to that during a recent conversation with one of his sponsors.

"With Angel we had a lot of difficult times because at the end of the day he is the doctor," Nadal said. "And when I'm with the doctor, it's because things are going wrong."

Dr. Angel Ruiz Cotorro with Rafael Nadal

Nadal went on to claim that Dr. Cotorro's positive and optimistic approach has frequently helped him during recovery. The 20-time Grand Slam champion asserted that he would not have been able to achieve as much success without his physician's support.

"But Angel is a very positive person, and that is an important virtue in the medical world," Rafael Nadal continued. "He projects himself and looks forward optimistically. He helped me find solutions. Without him, I would never have been able to win some tournaments. Without a trusted doctor, my results would have been totally different. I can only thank him."

Dr. Angel Ruiz Cotorro gives an update on Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal will look to win a 12th title at Monte Carlo

Rafael Nadal has not played since his shock quarterfinal defeat to Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Australian Open. Many expected the Spaniard to return during the recent Miami Open, but that didn't happen.

Nadal's doctor has now confirmed that the Mallorcan will return to the tour at the Monte Carlo Masters, where the 34-year-old is a 11-time champion. Angel Ruiz Cotorro also talked about Nadal's Roland Garros ambitions.

"Rafa is doing very well, he can train very hard," Angel Ruiz Cotorro said. "His goal remains clay - first with Monte-Carlo, while having in sight another title at Roland-Garros. He will arrive in good form in Paris, assuming the tournament is not postponed due to the pandemic."