In his comeback to the competition after nearly a year away due to a nearly career-ending hip injury, Rafael Nadal defeated fellow grand slam winner Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-1. Nadal admitted that his comeback had been filled with uncertainty.
Nadal called the victory one of the most emotional despite his 22 slam and over 90 singles titles championship wins.
He commented:
“Today is honestly an emotional and important day for me after probably one of the toughest years of my tennis career without a doubt,” Nadal said on court following the victory.
To have the chance to come back after a year and play in front of an amazing crowd and play at a very positive level is something that probably makes us feel proud – myself, all the team, family that have been there every single day during the last year.
“ missed being healthy, I missed feeling myself competitive and playing in front of full crowds like this. Things went well and I’m excited to be back again tomorrow.”
Nadal in Brisbane, ranking, and results in 2024
At the moment ranked no.672, Rafael has achieved a composed 1-0 match record in 2024. The Spaniard is currently having a run in Brisbane where he defeated
Rafael won 92 titles in his career: 24 on hard courts, 63 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 4 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
