Rafael Nadal is back in training. The right knee of the Spaniard has not healed completely. By the start of the season, the world number one wants to have solved the problems.
The race against time has long since begun. In less than three weeks’ time, the industry leader wants to be the first in Abu Dhabi at the invitation tournament (28. till 30. December) will start the new tennis year. However, it is uncertain whether Nadal has cured his knee pain by then.
“My knee doesn’t have to be ready yet, but it should work in a month’s time,”said the 31-year-old at a sponsor’s appointment last Tuesday.
Nadal had kicked the well-known weak spot out of Nadal in the season finale. After losing the final in Shanghai against Roger Federer, the 16-time Grand Slam winner abandoned a start in Basel and had to retire in Paris-Bercy and at the ATP finals in London due to injury.
He is still not free of symptoms. Before his holiday in the Caribbean, Nadal had already undergone treatment on his right knee, now patience is called for:”I don’t want to rush into anything in order to be ready when it counts. It takes time to recover. That’s why I lost a few weeks.”
I’ll try to play in Abu Dhabi, Brisbane and the Australian Open,”he says,” but I’m sure the plan will work. It would be the ideal case, but I want to try everything.”