Tennis star Rafael Nadal has to postpone his comeback. “I would have liked to play in Doha,” the 37-year-old wrote on the X platform on Wednesday evening (formerly Twitter): “Unfortunately, I’m not ready to compete again.” The 22-time Grand Slam winner had originally targeted the ATP tournament in Qatar (from February 19th) to return to the court.
Instead, Nadal now wants to “concentrate on continuing to work in order to be ready for the show event in Las Vegas and the fantastic tournament in Indian Wells,” the Spaniard continued.
“Every injury is a setback”
Nadal suffered another injury during his comeback tournament in Brisbane in January after a year’s break, which meant he was unable to compete at the Australian Open in Melbourne. An MRI scan revealed a muscle injury, but not in the same place where he had previously sustained his serious injury.
“I’ve had some problems in the last few weeks and I’m a bit at my limit,” Nadal had previously told the Spanish television station La Sexta in an interview: “At the moment every blow, every injury is a setback, not only physically, but also mentally. “
Nadal, on the other hand, has his sights firmly set on the first Masters tournament of the year (from March 6th). “I am 100 percent confident that I will be at Indian Wells, it is a special tournament for me,” he said. But his main goal, says Nadal, is “to try to start the clay court season in as good a shape as possible.”
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At his favorite tournament, the French Open, in June, Nadal wants to show himself in top form again and win the historic title number 15 – the tennis competitions of the Paris Olympic Games will also take place at the same location in the Stade Roland Garros.