Rafael Nadal says he does not have big expectations for the Australian Open as he prepares to play for the first time since a foot injury ruled him out of the final months of the 2021 season.
The 35-year-old Spaniard plays Britain’s Andy Murray on Friday at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship, an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi.
Nadal has played one event – Washington in August – since early June.
“I know the comeback will be not easy,” said the 20-time major champion.
Nadal was hampered by the foot injury at the French Open in June, where he failed to defend his title for the first time since 2016 after losing to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals.
The problem ruled him out of Wimbledon and the Olympics, although he did return to tour action in Washington at the start of August.
After beating American Jack Sock in his opening match, Nadal lost to South Africa’s Lloyd Harris and has not played since.
The Spaniard then ended his season to recover from the injury, which he said he had been “suffering” with for a year.
Now he is preparing to return in Abu Dhabi, where he will face Murray – another former world number one – after the 34-year-old Briton beat his compatriot Dan Evans 6-3 6-2 on Thursday.
“I didn’t know if I’d get to be able to play these kind of matches again. Hopefully we can put on a good performance for a couple of old guys,” Murray said about facing Nadal.
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