Rafael Nadal To Play ATP Finals And This Is What He Has To Do To Become Year-End No.1

19-time grand slam champion Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will travel to London later this week ahead of the ATP Finals after receiving the all clear following an MRI scan.

The participation of the world No.1 was recently in doubt following his withdrawal from the Paris Masters. In the French capital Nadal sustained an injury to his abdomen during a practice session ahead of his semi-final clash with Dennis Shapovalov. On Monday he underwent further evaluation in Mallorca by having an MRI scan, which was evaluated by his doctor Angel Ruiz Cotorro.

Fortunately for the king of clay it is good news. The evaluation concluded that there is only a slight tear in his abdomen. Declaring him fit enough to travel to the final ATP event of the season. Although he will be carefully monitored over the coming days to ensure there are no more setbacks.

“Yesterday I had a MRI scan in Mallorca and despite having a small strain in the right abdominal rectum, I will travel to London.” Nadal wrote on social media.
“Thursday or Friday I will start adapting to the service. The idea is to be able to play the ATP Finals in London.”

The ATP Finals have been a tournament of nightmares for the 33-year-old, who is yet to win the title. Since reaching the final back in 2013, he missed three out of the five following editions due to injury. On top of that, at the 2017 ATP Finals he withdrew during the tournament due to a knee injury. He qualified for this year’s event on July 11th.

Nadal enters London with a 640-point lead over Novak Djokovic in the race for the year-end No.1. However, with a maximum of 1500 points up for grabs in London, the battle for the top spot continues. Due to it being a round-robin competition, there are numerous scenarios in which either player can finish the event as No.1. If Nadal progressed to the semi-finals, Djokovic needs to win the event to have a chance.

“There’s always a chance that I win all my matches in London, that I play well. I have done it in the past, and I like playing there.” Djokovic told reporters on Sunday.
“But it’s extremely difficult task considering who my opponents are going to be. You know, you’re playing top 10 player every single match.
“So that’s a big task on my end that I have to focus on.
“And as a consequence, of course, if I manage to get the year-end No. 1, that would be, of course, fantastic.”

The draw for the ATP Finals will take place on Tuesday afternoon. Nadal and Djokovic will be in separate groups.

Year-end No.1 Scenarios in London