WATCH: Hundreds of fans watch Rafael Nadal’s first training in Bastad ahead of Nordea Open

Nadal is set to partner Casper Ruud in the med's doubles in the ATP 250 event.

WATCH: Hundreds of fans watch Rafael Nadal’s first training in Bastad ahead of Nordea Open

Rafael Nadal (via Imago)

Away from the exhilarating action at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Rafael Nadal has packed his bags and landed in Bastad for the Nordea Open. He is set to take part in the ATP 250 event to assess himself ahead of the Paris Olympics.

Nadal immediately took to the court to begin training ahead of the event. The session was open to fans and they turned up in big numbers to watch him play on the open clay court. After practice, the fans were delighted to get autographs and pictures of the tennis legend.

YouTube video

Nadal last played at the Bastad tournament in 2005, just a month after claiming his first Roland Garros title. He went all the way in the ATP 250 event, beating Tomas Berdych in the final. This year, he is said to partner with Casper Ruud in the men’s doubles in Bastad. Ruud was recently in action at Wimbledon, where he made a second-round exit.

FS Video

Rafael Nadal has not played any professional match since his 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 loss to Alexander Zverev in the first round of the French Open. He endured a poor run during the clay season, winning just fie matches across four events. He will be hoping for a change of fortune at the Nordea Open.

He will be hoping to do well in Bastad ahead of the Summer Games, where he will partner with Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s doubles. He has won two Olympic golds so far, one in the singles at Beijing 2008 and the other in the doubles at Rio 2016.

Top seed Jannik Sinner withdraws from the Nordea Open in Bastad due to fatigue

While Nadal is set to delight fans in Bastad, Jannik Sinner has withdrawn from the Nordea Open citing exhaustion. He was set to be the top seed for the tournament but decided to pull out following his loss to Daniil Medvedev in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.

Sinner announced the news on social media, stating that he had to follow his team’s advice and take some time to rest and recover. He is expected to represent Italy at the Paris Olympics which starts on July 27.

Jannik-Sinner-Wimbledon-24
Jannik Sinner (Image via Imago)

I’m sad to have to withdraw from Bastad next week due to fatigue. Never an easy decision as I would love to play, but following the advice from my team and doctors they have advised it’s best to take some time to rest and recover. I hope to play in Bastad in the future, I’ve heard it’s a great tournament.

Jannik Sinner said on Instagram

Following Sinner’s withdrawal, Casper Ruud and Andrey Rublev are now the top two seeds in Bastad. The duo suffered early defeats at Wimbledon and will be hoping to do better in Sweden.

In case you missed it: