Rafael Nadal wished a happy Easter to his fans celebrating and also used a chance to confirm that he is working hard on returning as soon as possible. On Friday, Nadal posted a video from a practice court. This week, Nadal announced his withdrawal from the Monte Carlo Masters.
Nadal captioned his Instagram Story: “Happy Easter, and… work in progress.”
Rafa started service work.â¤ï¸ð¥#VamosRafa ðªðª
pic.twitter.com/ckKtZ2VoJI — Rafael Nadal Fans Pageðï¸ (@jusvan28) April 7, 2023
Nadal to miss the start of the clay season
Nadal, who hasn’t played since the Australian Open due to a hip injury, was targeting to make his return in Monte Carlo.
But Nadal is not yet at 100% and he decided to skip Monte Carlo. “Unfortunately I am still not ready to compete and will miss one of those special tournaments I always love to play. Monte Carlo is and has been a key event on my career, but unfortunately I will have to miss it again since I am still not ready to compete without the risk of getting injured.
I will continue the process of getting ready to come back,” Nadal said in an official press release. Nadal is signed up to compete at the Barcelona Open, which starts on April 17th. Last weekend, Barcelona boss tournament director David Ferrer claimed Nadal was 100% certain to play in Barcelona.
“Nadal is training quite well with intensity. We still don’t know if he will be in Monte Carlo but he will surely be in Barcelona and will arrive well for the tour on the clay. I have a lot of faith in him. That he physically has not had wear and tear is good,” Ferrer said.
After missing Monte Carlo, Nadal certainly does not want to miss Barcelona as well. As it stands now, Nadal will play three tournaments leading up to the French Open – Barcelona, Madrid and Rome. It remains to be seen how will Nadal look when he makes his long-awaited return.
