Obviously, that must have tickled him. Completing Roland-Garros and the Olympic Games, on “his” surface and in the same place, was a huge goal for Rafael Nadal for his last season on the circuit. And the Spaniard, sidelined for a year, announced this Friday that he would return to competition at the beginning of January during the ATP tournament in Brisbane, preparatory to the Australian Open.
“After a year without competition, it’s time to come back. It will be in Brisbane in the first week of January, see you there,” said the former world No. 1, aged 37, in a video posted on his social networks.
Rafael Nadal has not played since his defeat in the second round of the Australian Open last January. He had to have hip surgery in June, and resumed training at home in Mallorca in October. Having fallen to 663rd place in the ATP rankings, Rafael Nadal will have to benefit from invitations to appear in the final draw of the biggest tournaments.