diff --git a/lib/internal/fs/rimraf.js b/lib/internal/fs/rimraf.js
index e88dd9697b1938..d64feacedd0ed6 100644
--- a/lib/internal/fs/rimraf.js
+++ b/lib/internal/fs/rimraf.js
@@ -249,7 +249,7 @@ function _rmdirSync(path, options, originalErr) {
 
       for (let i = 1; i <= tries; i++) {
         try {
-          return rmdirSync(path, options);
+          return rmdirSync(path, {...options, recursive: false});
         } catch (err) {
           // Only sleep if this is not the last try, and the delay is greater
           // than zero, and an error was encountered that warrants a retry.