Rafael Nadal says he ‘cannot guarantee’ that he will play at the Australian Open after making his return to competitive tennis earlier this week at an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi.
The former world No.1 took part in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship where he lost both of his matches. In his opening match he fell in straight sets to Andy Murray before narrowly missing out on winning the third place playoff against Denis Shapovalov who prevailed 10-6 in the decisive tiebreaker.
The event was the first time Nadal has played in front of fans since the Washington Open in August due to a foot injury. He suffers from Muller-Weiss syndrome, which is a rare condition caused by an improperly developed bone. The 35-year-old underwent treatment on his foot in Barcelona earlier this year.
Abu Dhabi is usually an event which players used as a final tuneup ahead of the new season and it was assumed this would also be the case for Nadal. However, the Spaniard has since admitted that it is still not “100 per cent” that he will be playing in Melbourne. He also missed both Wimbledon and the US Open this year.
“I need to talk to my team, see how my body responds after these days,” Nadal told reporters on Saturday.
“The plan is to go to Australia, but I cannot guarantee it one hundred percent. I have time to make a decision.”
Nadal has won the Australian Open only once in his career which was back in 2009. Although he has also reached the final on four other occasions. Should he not play in the Grand Slam next month it would be the first time he has missed the tournament since 2013 when he was forced to pull out due to a stomach virus.
“I cannot guarantee Australia one hundred percent, because I need to go home and see how the body responds after these days. I have time to make a decision. At this point in my career, I need to go day by day, study each movement well,’ Nadal continued.
“I have been able to show a competitive level against good players even without being in perfect condition. There are things to improve, but looking at things with perspective it has been a positive tournament.”
There will be little time for Nadal to make his final decision with the first charter flight of players heading to Australia in just over a week’s time. The 2022 season will begin on January 3rd with three tournaments taking place. One of those is in Melbourne which Nadal has provisionally entered to play.
The Australian Open will then start on January 17th.
