Craig Tiley, the director of the 2024 Australian Open, has revealed that Rafael Nadal plans to make his comeback to the major tennis tournaments at that year’s competition.
Since suffering a hip flexor injury in his loss to Mackenzie McDonald in the second round of the 2023 tournament held in Melbourne, the 37-year-old has not competed in any competitive events since that time.
In the beginning of this year, Rafael Nadal made the announcement that he would be skipping the French Open in order to undergo surgery on the condition. Nadal has won 14 of his total 22 major titles at the French Open.
Because of his lack of competition, the Spaniard has fallen all the way to 240th place in the global rankings; nonetheless, Rafael Nadal will be able to rely on a protected position for the very first grand slam event of the 2024 season.
During an appearance on the Australian morning television show The Today Show, the chief executive officer of Tennis Australia, Tim Tiley, stated in an interview that “We can reveal exclusively here that Rafa will be back.” He has been away for the majority of this year, but we have been in contact with him over the past few days, and he has verified that he will be returning as the champion in 2022. This news has us very excited. Wow, that’s really cool.
Former women’s singles champions Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, and Angelique Kerber are all scheduled to make returns, as was confirmed by Tiley, who also stated that “some of the greats” will be traveling to Australia. “We’ll welcome them – and their families – back to Melbourne with open arms and can’t wait to see what their next chapter brings,” he added. “We’re looking forward to seeing what their next chapter brings.”
Nick Kyrgios, a fan favorite at home who has only competed in a single ATP Tour match in 2023 due to injuries, has resumed his training and is optimistic that he will be able to compete in Melbourne. Tiley added that Kyrgios was “doing his utmost to get back to his best” in the tournament.
