Tennis legend Nadal hints at Australian Open return: “Steps forward have been positive”

• Nadal has been sidelined by a left psoas ailment since January.
• He is planning to return to Australia after Christmas.
• If his preparations go as planned, he is expected to play in the Australian Open.

Rafael Nadal is expected to return soon; he is said to be leaving for Australia after Christmas.

Since January, the 22-time Grand Slam champion has been sidelined by a left psoas ailment suffered during the Australian Open. He might make his comeback by taking the court again during this competition, which would be a big step toward his return to competitive tennis.

Nadal has indicated that he is prepared to compete again following a time of indecision. After failing to recuperate during the clay season, the 37-year-old had arthroscopic surgery and finished his season in May.

After being hesitant to make a comeback at first, Rafael Nadal announced his return recently without teasing a specific tournament or return date. There are rumors circulating that he might make a comeback at the Australian Open. The former world No. 1 is expected to travel to Australia after Christmas, where he will likely train and play in warm-up competitions to get back into shape for matches. This information comes from Cadena SER.

It is expected that he will play in the Australian Open if his preparations go as planned. The source also states that Nadal plans to return home to Mallorca and then travel to Australia, where he will likely step up his training at his academy in Kuwait and possibly compete there.

It comes just weeks after Nadal announced that he would be making a comeback to professional tennis. “I sincerely believe that I will return to play,” the 37-year-old said at the Clinica del Tenis.

“I can’t say at what level I’ll be able to return, but I’ve never lost the desire to play and now it seems that things are going in the right direction. I’m not ready to say whether it will be in one place or another, but I’m happy with how things are going.”

Nadal also confirmed that he would soon be giving more concrete details, adding: “A few weeks ago, I wasn’t in a position to say if I could come back, but the steps forward have been positive. I hope to be able to say something more concrete in the next few weeks.”

Although Nadal has not yet provided any information, it seems as though one will shortly. The Australian Open’s tournament director, Craig Tiley, is optimistic that the former world number one will confirm his place in the opening Grand Slam of the year.

“Rafa has been training, I follow him closely, probably every day, because he’s a massive drawcard for us,” Tiley said in Melbourne on Thursday. “He wants to play, he’s obviously planning on playing. It all depends on how he pulls up.

“Hopefully in the next week or the next two weeks, we get some specific confirmation of that. I’m certain Rafa will be here because he’s not going to want to miss the opportunity to repeat what he did a couple of years ago.”

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