Rafael Nadal has clarified what REALLY happened when he left his pregnant wife in hospital to play tennis after the Spaniard was attacked by fans who thought he had abandoned her.
- Rafael Nadal clarified why he left his wife in the hospital to play in the US Open
- The 36-year-old left his pregnant wife in Spain while he played tennis
- However, he said he encouraged him to go and play while he was with the specialists
- The couple welcomed their baby boy, Rafa Jr, in October last year
Rafael Nadal has set the record straight with his decision to leave his wife in hospital to compete at last year’s US Open, in tribute to his son’s ‘brave’ mother.
Nadal and his wife, Xisca Perello, welcomed a baby boy named Rafael Jr in October last year, but there were complications with the pregnancy and he had to spend time in hospital in September.
However, Nadal opted to head to New York for the US Open, leaving doctors to monitor his wife in Mallorca as she looks to add to her grand slam haul.
Rafael Nadal explains why he decided to head to the US Open while his pregnant wife (left) is in hospital.
That decision resulted in heavy backlash from fans, but the 36-year-old clarified what actually happened last year.
‘Luckily, I have a woman who is brave,’ he said in Sydney. ‘And he always helped me do everything I could and more, and he always encouraged me to keep going.
‘So, in that sense, she made it easy for me. In fact, he was the one who motivated me to come to the United States.’
Shortly after the US Open, Nadal headed to London to feature in Roger Federer’s emotional farewell to tennis. Since his wife was heavily pregnant in Spain, the Swiss superstar greatly appreciated his friend’s kind gesture.
Fans criticized the 36-year-old for leaving her husband’s side to compete in New York last year
Xisca, who welcomed baby boy Rafael Jr in October, gave her blessing for Nadal to play
‘I called him after the US Open – I waited for him to finish that tournament – just to let him know about my retirement,’ Federer said.
‘Rafa told me, “I will try everything I can to be with you.” And that was obviously incredible to me. And showed again how important we are to each other and how much respect we have.
‘And I just thought it would be a beautiful, amazing story for us, for sports, for tennis, and maybe beyond that, where we can co-exist in a tight rivalry and come out to the top and show that, hey , it’s just tennis again.
‘So, an incredible effort by Rafa, and obviously I’ll never forget what he did for me in London.’
