Rafael Nadal lost to world No. 9 Hubert Hurkacz at the Italian Open.
In what is likely to be the Spaniard’s final appearance in Rome, the 37-year-old Nadal cruised to a 6-1, 6-3 victory over the mighty Pole in just 93 minutes.
Nadal, a 10-time champion in the Italian capital, has hinted that 2024 will likely be his last season before retiring.
The 14-time French Open champion has not yet decided whether he will play at Roland Garros this year. The tournament begins on May 26th.
“As you can imagine, this decision is not clear in my mind today,” Nadal said.
“But if I have to say how I feel, and my feelings are in any way approaching, I’m going to say, ‘Go to Roland Garros and do your best.’
“Physically, I have some issues, but not so much that I would miss the most important event of my tennis career.”
Elsewhere, Poland’s world No. 1 Iga Swiatek defeated Yulia Putintseva 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the women’s last 16.
Swiatek came back from a 4-1 deficit in the second set to extend her winning streak to eight matches, defeating Aliaksandra Sasnovic in straight sets and will face Angelique Kerber in the next round.
Naomi Osaka has yet to drop a set in this tournament after defeating Daria Kasatkina 6-3, 6-3.
Japan’s former world No. 3 will next face the winner of Linda Noskova and Qingwen Zheng.
