Spanish star Rafael Nadal will return to tour action this week for his promotional debut since Brisbane in the first week of January. Nadal played last weekend's Las Vegas exhibition match in a three-set battle with compatriot Alcaraz before losing 12-14 in the deciding set.
Nadal data map
In the interview, Nadal said he did not have high expectations for his future in Indian Wells and said that his training has not been good recently. After Brisbane, Nadal had planned to play at the Australian Open, but chose to take a break due to a muscle strain.
I don't know what level I'm going to play at Indian Wells, but that's the least important thing. It's very important for me to spend a few days in Indian Wells and train with these pros. My preparation before Indian Wells was not ideal, and I was training well before Brisbane and I hope to be able to play a training set before the first match. The most important thing is that I can finish this tournament healthy. ”
Rafael Nadal once again said that this year could be the last season of his career: "As for the rest of the clay season, it may be the last season or not, I haven't made a decision yet, things are moving towards that at the moment. ”
Nadal is ranked protected in Indian Wells in the first round against former Wimbledon runner-up Raonic in eight of the previous 10 meetings, although Raonic won their only meeting at Indian Wells (2015) in three sets. However, the 33-year-old has been in poor form of late, having retired in the last two tournaments, withdrawing from the third set against De Minaur in the first round of the Australian Open and the second set against Sinner in the quarter-finals in Rotterdam.
Nadal and Raonic will face up to the tournament on Thursday night, with the winner facing seventh seed Rune in the second round.
Text, edited by Faye Wong, picture Visual China).