Nadal returns with doubles defeat

By: Racing & Sports Time published 2023-12-31 at 11:13 PM (GMT +11:00)

Tennis icon Rafael Nadal returned to action with a doubles defeat after nearly a year on the sidelines.

RAFAEL NADAL of Spain plays a backhand against Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic of the 2018 Australian Open at Melbourne Park in Australia.
RAFAEL NADAL of Spain plays a backhand against Victor Estrella Burgos of the Dominican Republic of the 2018 Australian Open at Melbourne Park in Australia. Picture: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images

The Spaniard suffered a hip injury during his second round Australian Open match in January 2023 and has not been in competitive action since.

Nadal underwent surgery in June and returned to the competitive action at the Brisbane International on Sunday alongside Marc Lopez, who he won Olympic gold with at Rio 2016.

The pair fell to a 6-4 6-4 defeat to the Australian duo of Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson, but there were some promising signs from the 37-year-old.

Nadal now switches his attention to singles action and Tuesday's clash with 2020 US Open champion Dominic Thiem, who he practised with in Brisbane earlier this week.


Racing and Sports