OMNISPORT

Nicolas Almagro's injury woes almost forced him into an early retirement, but the Spaniard insists the experience changed his life for the better.

Ranked as highly as ninth in the world in 2011, Almagro suffered a foot injury in a 2014 French Open first-round match against Jack Sock and failed to recover in time to feature at Wimbledon or the US Open.

Having spent such a lengthy spell out of action, Almagro revealed things got so bad he considered turning his back on the sport, but was ultimately grateful to gain a new perspective.

Asked if he pondered quitting, the 31-year-old told Omnisport: "Yes, of course, but in the end you have a lot of time to think that you didn't have before.

"You realise that really the only thing you know how to do is to play tennis and you can't play it due to an injury. You realise it is difficult to feel accomplished again, your body changes, your mind won't stop turning around, you seem to never see the light at the end of the tunnel.

"It was a really hard time in my sports career, but in my personal life it was the prettiest experience I could have.

"So, if you ask me, I'd do it again with my eyes closed. I think I learned a lot at a personal and vital level and then I realised that the tennis court isn't everything. There's more in life than you get out of that two hours [on the court] and one should enjoy that."

Almagro ended a four-year title drought when he won the Estoril Open in May.