JAKARTA - Tennis star Rafael Nadal says there are many things more important than tennis.
Nadal was eliminated from the US after being defeated by American player Frances Tiafoe in the round of 16 with a score of 6-4 4-6 6-4 6-3.
Speaking during a press conference after the game, Nadal hinted that the defeat might not be as important to him as many people thought.
"Now I have to go back home, I have more important things than tennis," he was quoted as saying by Maraca on Tuesday.
He announced his wife was pregnant in June but she was hospitalized shortly before the US Open as a precaution.
He explained that he did not yet have the best preparation for the tournament, given his personal situation.
"Of course this is not the ideal preparation for me, but in other cases, it has gone well, even without perfect preparation," he said.
"We can't find a reason. We have to quite criticize myself.
That's the only way to improve, that's the only way I understand that you can find a solution."
The Spaniard also wanted to praise Tiafoe, who is trying to build the best moment of her career so far.
"Good for him [Frances Tiafoe], he's better than me," Nadal said.
"I played a bad game. He played a good game. I couldn't create the damage like before.
For some reason, I don't know, mental problems have happened in the last few months. But that doesn't matter.
"Ultimately, the only thing that happened was us advancing to the fourth round of the US Open and I faced a better player than me."
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