“I miss it zero” – says Rafael Nadal, the man with 22 Grand Slams, 14 French Opens, and a career most players would kill for.

Former world number one Rafael Nadal has revealed that he does not miss playing tennis. The 38-year-old is regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men’s tennis, having won as many as 22 Grand Slam titles.

Nadal, who is also known as the ‘King of Clay’ after winning 14 French Open titles, which is also a record in the competition’s history, retired from professional tennis last year after representing his country in the Davis Cup. The primary reason behind his decision was his struggles with fitness over the last few years.

Nadal stated that he does not ‘miss’ playing the sport. The former world number stated that he did not fall out of love with the sport but is satisfied with his career, where he managed to ‘close’ the chapter on his own terms.

“I don’t miss it, honestly – I miss it zero,” said Nadal. “Not because I ended tired or had a bad relationship with tennis – far from it. I finished happy, and if I could, I’d still be playing. Tennis made me happy all my life. When you realise you can’t, you try to close the chapter, and I’ve done that. It took me a while because I needed time to be sure that the decision I was making was the right one.

"What I would’ve hated is to be sitting on the couch at home thinking I could still be out there playing. When I saw that my body wasn’t going to recover to the level I needed to keep enjoying it the way I need to, I made the decision to stop.I don’t miss it because I ended with the peace of knowing my body couldn’t give more. I still follow tennis – not obsessively – but I watch the matches that interest me and follow the results because I’m passionate about sport.”