Paris Masters director reveals Rafael Nadal ‘has not made a request’ to play the tournament to say farewell to the crowd

It’s true that it was a real option for him to come to Paris to play matches, a form of logic given that the Davis Cup will be his final curtain, but no, he has not made a request.

 Cedric Pioline told Eurosport

Nadal has participated in the Paris Masters nine times and reached the final just once. In 2007, he played the final against David Nalbandian and lost it.

Nadal has been struggling with form and fitness issues since 2023. At the Australian Open, he picked up an injury and underwent surgery, as a consequence of which he ended up staying on the sidelines for the rest of the year. He returned to court in the 2024 Brisbane International, but another injury stopped him from participating in the next few tournaments. 

Cedric Pioline explains why Rafael Nadal chose the Davis Cup over bidding final goodbye to the Paris crowd 

Rafael Nadal bade an unofficial farewell to the French crowd this season when he lost to finalist Alexander Zverev in the first round. Although he came back to Roland Garros for the Olympics, fans probably had no idea that they would be watching Nadal play on Court Philippe-Chatrier for the last time. Cedric Pioline explained why Nadal made the right choice by signing up for the Davis Cup instead of the Paris Masters.

Choosing this moment, a Davis Cup in Spain with the possibility of experiencing this with all his teammates, his family, and his friends, makes sense, and it suits him well, I think.

Cédric Pioline told Eurosport

The Barcelona Open was the tournament Nadal played without any major injury trouble and continued to feature in the next few clay-court events. Because of fitness issues, he withdrew from the Laver Cup but signed up for the Six Kings Slam, an exhibition event held in Riyadh where he lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals. 

With Alcaraz, Nadal played his last official match. They had teamed up for the Paris Olympics and made it to the quarterfinals. Nadal also played the singles but eventual winner Novak Djokovic stopped him from advancing to the third round.