Nadal hopeful to return in Barcelona

Rafael Nadal is hopeful to make his return at next week's Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where the 12-time champion practised on Wednesday.

The Spaniard wrote on social media that he wants to play the ATP 500, which would mark just his second tournament of the year.

“Hello from Barcelona,” the 37-year-old wrote on social media in Spanish. “First training... I am excited to be here for a few days before the start of the tournament. I'm here to see how it goes, with the desire to try to play. I'll let you know.

“It’s important to say that I don't want to confirm I'll be playing, but I hope so. We'll see.”

Hola desde Barcelona 👋🏻
Primer entreno… con la ilusión de estar aquí estos días previos al inicio del torneo.
Estoy aquí para ver qué tal… con las ganas de intentar jugar. Ya os iré contando.
Importante decir que no quiero confirmar que jugaré, ojalá que sí.
Ya veremos 🤞🏻 pic.twitter.com/N9cVDbO3N1

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) April 10, 2024

Nadal boasts a 66-4 match record in Barcelona, where the stadium court is named after him. The home favourite first lifted the trophy in 2005 and most recently in 2021.

The former No. 1 in the PIF ATP Rankings' lone tournament of 2024 came in January at the ATP 250 in Brisbane, where he reached the quarter-finals.

Hola, Rafa 👋@RafaelNadal se ha ejercitado este miércoles en la pista que lleva su nombre en el @rctb1899.@ATPTour_ES | @atptour | #BCNOpenBS pic.twitter.com/4XcaB1oBg0

— Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell (@bcnopenbs) April 10, 2024