Rafael Nadal surprises fans worldwide with a sweet announcement before Australian Open 2024!

Rafael Nadal will commence his Brisbane International campaign starting December 31.

Rafael Nadal surprises fans worldwide with a sweet announcement before Australian Open 2024!

Rafael Nadal with Marc Lopez (Credits: Tennisnet)

Rafael Nadal is all set to make his comeback to the ATP Tour. Most recently, the 37-year-old surprised fans after announcing that he would revive his Olympic-gold-winning doubles partnership with Marc Lopez if the reports coming out of Spain are to be believed.

The Spaniard recently touched down in Brisbane and will commence his comeback campaign starting December 31. His highly-anticipated participation at the ATP 500 event will be followed by his appearance in the season’s first Grand Slam, the Australian Open.

YouTube video

Former World No. 1 Rafael Nadal had been sidelined from the 2023 season after he sustained a nasty hip injury during his second-round performance against Mackenzie McDonald at the season’s Australian Open. However, after opting for a corrective hip injury in hopes of fixing his injury concerns and enduring an extensive rehabilitation period, the Spaniard is set to return to the courts for the upcoming season.

FS Video

Meanwhile, Marc Lopez, who joined Nadal’s coaching team in 2021, walked away from professional tennis after suffering a second-round loss at the hands of Carlos Alcaraz at the Madrid Open. However, the Spanish coach will seemingly come out of retirement for a special get-together with the 22-time Grand Slam champion.

The duo earned laurels for their country after they clinched a gold medal in the men’s doubles category at the 2016 Rio Olympics. Their doubles appearance at Brisbane International has garnered massive attention owing to the pair’s past success as a team.

Rafael Nadal swings in action with a practice session for Brisbane International

Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal recently took to the court for a practice session with Holger Rune at the Brisbane International premises. Amid his highly anticipated comeback news, fans have been closely monitoring the 37-year-old to spectate the latter in action.

Rafael Nadal in a practice session at Brisbane International (Credits: Via Open Source/X)

Holger Rune has enjoyed a decent 2023 run and is quickly emerging as one of the fierce younger players on the tour. Despite delivering bitter-sweet results at the season’s Grand Slam events, the Dane managed to stay relevant in the top-10 rankings chart, with his current ranking as the World No. 8.

Meanwhile, the former World No. 1 will be kept away from a seeded position in the men’s draw for Brisbane International. This update comes as a result of his massive drop in ranking owing to the Spaniard’s sabbatical from the 2023 season.

In case you missed it: