Rafa Nadal's coach shares worrying update ahead of return to tennis in Australia
The former World No.1's coach is worried about how his body will hold up with the rigours of grand slam tennis.
Rafa Nadal's coach Carlos Moya says he holds deep fears for how the former World No.1's body will hold up against the rigours of grand slam tennis. Earlier this month Nadal confirmed that he will make his long-awaited return to the court at the Brisbane International in January, in preparation for the Australian Open.
The 22-time grand slam champion has not played a match since hobbling out of the Melbourne Park grand slam in January after a shock second-round defeat to American Mackenzie McDonald. He has been struggling with a hip flexor problem and was only initially expected to be out of tennis for eight weeks with the injury. However, the 37-year-old ended up undergoing surgery on his hip in June after multiple setbacks, ruling him out for the remainder of the 2023 season.
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As his return to tennis nears, Moya is worried about whether the 37-year-old's body will hold up for what is expected to be his farewell tour. "Rafa's going to go from training, which he's doing very well, to competing. It's impossible to have the same conditions in training as in a match," Moya said in an interview with the ATP Tour.
"Playing the best of five sets, win, rest, return to court two days later ... That's the doubt I have right now, especially for a grand slam. But we have time. If the Australian Open started tomorrow, it would be a real fear.
"There's still a month left, a tournament before in Brisbane, demanding training ... I think all of this will put him in a position to be able to endure it. But now that's my fear."
Due to dropping out of the top 100 for the first time in 20 years, slipping to No.668, Moya says Nadal will need to rely on luck to gain a favourable draw at the Australian Open, avoiding strong opponents to build up some momentum. "I've never been of the thought that Rafa needs rhythm because he's too good for that," Moya said. "But now the situation is different."
Rafa Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz match to be shown on Netflix
Last week Netflix announced it would livestream a match between Nadal and current World No.2 Carlos Alcaraz on March 3. The streaming giant confirmed 'The Netflix Slam' on the back of its success with the celebrity golf tournament, 'Full Swing', in November.
The event featured professional golfers alongside F1 stars from the Netflix docu-series 'Drive to Survive'. The Nadal and Alcaraz match is the latest sporting event to be announced by the streaming juggernaut as it continues to move to join a host of big tech firms in cashing in on the popularity of streaming live sporting events.
The tennis face-off between Nadal and Alcaraz will stream on the platform as a dual broadcast in English and Spanish. Upon Netflix's announcement of the match, Nadal said in a statement, "I am sure it will be a fantastic night of tennis".
The match will be hosted by MGM Resorts International and will begin at noon at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Netflix confirmed more matches will be announced at a later date.
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