Rafael Nadal is expected to make his return to tennis on his clay-court stomping grounds in Monte-Carlo. At least that is the expectation of tournament organizers.
“We’re eager to welcome the legend, Rafael Nadal,” said a post made on the Monte-Carlos Rolex Masters’ official Twitter page. “He is definitely able to win his 12th trophy in Monte Carlo despite of his last injury.”
The 36-year-old has been sidelined since the Australian Open, where a hip injury plagued him during a second-round loss to Mackenzie McDonald. After Nadal’s 600 ranking points from his 2022 runner-up performance in Indian Wells came off the board on Monday, he fell out of the top 10 for the first time since 2005. He is also sidelined from the Miami Open, although the world No. 13 did not play Miami last season. In fact, Nadal also skipped Monte-Carlo and Barcelona in 2022 before beginning his clay-court campaign in Madrid.
Barcelona tournament director David Ferrer confirmed Monte-Carlo’s assertion that Nadal is ready to go. According to Ferrer, the 22-time Grand Slam champion is currently training five days per week and will play in Barcelona–which is held the week after Monte-Carlo starting April 16.
Monte-Carlo begins on April 9. It marks the second week of the clay-court swing, preceded by events in Estoril, Casablanca, and Houston. Nadal is an 11-time champion in the principality of Monaco.
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he’s back