Rafael Nadal made his highly anticipated return to the clay courts of Bastad after a 19-year absence. He formed a formidable partnership with Casper Ruud, and together they emerged victorious in their opening-round doubles match at the prestigious Nordea Open on Monday.
Nadal secured the singles championship in southern Sweden at
the age of 19 in 2005. This marks his initial return since then as he embarks
on preparations for the forthcoming Olympic clay tournament to be held at
Roland Garros in Paris.
Nadal and Ruud emerged victorious against the second-seeded
team of Guido Andreozzi and Miguel Reyes-Varela with a decisive score of 6-1,
6-4. The match took place in front of a substantial audience that had gathered
to witness the return of the esteemed 38-year-old Spanish tennis player, Rafael
Nadal, to competitive tennis. Nadal’s last tour match occurred in May, where he
faced defeat in the opening round of the French Open against Alexander Zverev.
He made the decision to forgo participation in the Wimbledon
tournament due to concerns regarding potential physical harm that could result
from transitioning between different court surfaces, particularly from grass to
clay. This decision was influenced by the his ongoing management of hip and
abdominal injuries that have persisted for approximately the past 18 months.
Nadal is scheduled to compete against Mr. Leo Borg, the
offspring of the renowned Swedish tennis player Bjorn Borg, in the opening
round of the Bastad singles tournament, which is set to transpire on Tuesday.