Updated
01/11/2021
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18:27
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Lhe foot recovery is on track for Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard, who has not played since he gave in to Lloyd Harris in the second round of the Open 500 in Washington, confirmed this Monday in Paris that he would play the Abu Dhabi exhibition (December 16-18) as the first stop to Australia.
The Mubadala World Championship had confirmed the presence of Casper Ruud and Denis Shapovalov. Nadal, the last champion of the tournament after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas on December 21, 2019, is the one with the most titles in the capital of the Emirates with a total of five.
It should be remembered that the first ‘Grand Slam’ appears on the calendar from January 17 to 30, but that the players have the final date of December to enter Australia.
Nadal was in Paris today, on the occasion of a publicity event with the Babolat racket brand, and has revealed its initial plans for the upcoming season.
Nadal plans to play a second preparatory tournament for the ‘best’ of the antipodes that could be the ATP Cup where he could not play the last edition due to back problems. “I’m working really hard for it,” he says.
The good news regarding Rafa and his presence in Australia, thanks to the treatment that took place in Barcelona on September 7, collides with Roger Federer, who has not yet been seen practicing on a tennis court.
For his part, Novak Djokovic, the third member of the ‘Big Three’, warned yesterday in Paris that he does not yet know whether to go to Melbourne to defend his title due to the mandatory two-week quarantine for unvaccinated players as is his case.
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