‘Absolutely no doubts about Rafael Nadal ethics’ – former ATP ace
Any suggestion that Rafael Nadal was doping at the French Open this year should be immediately dismissed, says former French Davis Cup captain Arnaud Clement.
Nadal came under the spotlight at Roland Garros after admitting to taking pain-killing injections in his injured foot, openly admitting he would not have been able to compete without them.
Professional road cyclists, Guillaume Martin and Thibaut Pinot, said that would be considered ‘doping’ in their sport, although the World Anti-Doping Agency confirmed no rules had been broken.
Nadal went on to win a 14th French Open title, and Clement believes it is time for the accusations to stop.
I never asked myself the question in relation to Rafael Nadal, especially after the last Roland Garros, everything he did,” Clement told Eurosport.
“In addition, he even almost made it public. So at some point, there are rules, we follow them or we go beyond them, but in no case do I believe that Rafael Nadal was on drugs. I have absolutely no doubts about the ethics of this player.
“It’s not because a player is doped that he is particularly physical or athletic.
“You have to be careful with this kind of shortcut. We could also see players who were taken for doping and we said to ourselves, ‘but no, not him, it’s weird’, because it’s not the physics we imagine for a doped guy.”
Free >> Join our legendary newsletter
Join >> Receive $700/£600 of tennis gear from the Tennishead CLUB
Social >> Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & YouTube
Read >> World’s best tennis magazine
Watch >> How to enjoy ATP/WTA/Slam tennis on TV
Shop >> Lowest price tennis gear from our trusted partner
