Rafael Nadal advanced past Alexander Zverev in the most unfortunate of ways, as the latter was forced to retire due to an injury. Nadal's victory now gives him a chance to hoist his 14th French Open trophy in front of the crowd at Roland Garros, as he awaits the winner of the Marin Cilic-Casper Ruud semifinal. The Spaniard was asked about his own injury, the foot ailment, following the French Open win. Nadal made a shocking statement, per tennis writer and commentator Jose Morgado.

Nadal shockingly said that he “would prefer to lose Sunday's final and get a new foot.” That's not saying much, considering that Nadal already has 13 French Open titles.

In all seriousness, though, that is a look into just how bad Nadal's injury is. The 21-time Grand Slam champion was forced to miss time in 2021 with a foot injury.

The ailment then flared up at the Madrid Open in May, prompting Nadal to bring his doctor with him to Roland Garros. He has mentioned learning to live and play through the pain.

That's something Nadal has done very well at the French Open. He breezed through the first three rounds at the French Open before contesting competitive matches against Felix Auger-Aliassime and Novak Djokovic.

Now, he'll have to fight through the pain one more time on Sunday. Another Roland Garros trophy awaits if he is able to.