Novak Djokovic issues French Open fears after ‘watching videos’ of Rafael Nadal training

Novak Djokovic raised concerns over Rafael Nadal’s potential absence from the French Open as he revealed he had been watching videos of his rival.

Novak Djokovic revealed that he had been watching videos of Rafael Nadal training as the Spaniard races to recover in time for the French Open. The world No 14 has been sidelined with a psoas injury and is hoping to be at his most successful tournament later this month. Djokovic also shared his wish to see his long-time rival at the next Grand Slam of the year, admitting the tournament’s history would suffer if Nadal was absent.

Nadal’s French Open hopes have been thrown into doubt as the 36-year-old continues to struggle with an injury he picked up during his second-round loss at the Australian Open. The Spaniard initially hoped to play a full clay swing but has now missed every big tournament so far – Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Madrid and Rome.

A 14-time champion at Roland Garros, Nadal is still trying to recover in time to play in the tournament which starts in 16 days. And his rival Djokovic has also shared the same hopes, admitting that he had been watching videos of Nadal’s training sessions.

It comes as a particularly worrying video of Nadal practising at his academy surfaced on social media, showing the 22-time Grand Slam champion doubled over in pain with his team around him. “I know I’ve been seeing some videos that he’s been training, he’s been trying to get himself ready for it,” Djokovic said of his rival.