'Not easy' Rafael Nadal admits he thought he'd already have kids with wife by his age

express.co.uk:

Rafael Nadal, 35, will be facing Denis Shapovalov in the Australian Open Quarter-Final this morning. However, the tennis star has admitted he had thought his family life would be different by the age he’s at now.Nadal has been married to his girlfriend Maria Francisca Perello since 2019.The pair met when they were teenagers, dating for many years before tying the knot.Their glamorous wedding took place in a Spanish castle in Majorca called La Fortaleza.However, Nadal has opened up about how his family plans are not exactly what he thought they’d be.The 20-time Grand Slam champion has opened up about having children in a candid unearthed interview.In 2019, he said: “You have to adapt to situations.“Having a family?

I don’t know, things are not easy to predict."At this age, I thought I would already be a former player and start a family."He added to Spanish publication Marca: "As a young man I thought that at 30 I would have already retired and instead I’m still here."The only thing I know is that I will have a family."This is not the first time the player has opened up about having a family.Speaking back in 2017, Nadal was also asked if he would be following in his tennis rival Roger Federer’s footsteps.Federer has four kids, two sets of twins, with his wife Mirka Federer.Nadal told Argentine talk show Con Amigos Asi: “I would love to have children, boys, girls…“I'm a person who loves kids and I'm a family guy.”"But also I tell you that the reality is… the years keep passing…“I would like to start to do all of this when my sporting life determines it."I think it's also above all about looking after the kids."I don't know if it [travelling throughout the year when you have children] is ideal."Nadal is one of the favourites.