Rafael Nadal provides big update on Australian Open participation in latest Twitter post

The decision from Australian Open organisers to only allow vaccinated players to participate in the tournament has seen the withdrawal from some of the players. The participation of Current World No 1 Novak Djokovic is also in question following his withdrawal from the ATP Cup.

Despite no confirmation over Novak Djokovic's availability, former World No 1 Rafael Nadal has given update on his participation post recovering from COVID-19. 

Australian Open: Is Rafael Nadal playing the first Grand Slam of the year?

Rafael Nadal who is currently ranked No. 6 in the world returned to tennis action during the 2021 Mubadala World Tennis Championship in December after being out of Tennis for 4-months due to injury. Since Nadal got infected with COVID-19, there were serious doubts over his participation for the 2022 season. However, the Spaniard has now provided an update to his fans by posting an image on his Twitter handle. He captioned the image 'Don’t tell anyone… … here I am'.

Below the caption is the image of Rafael Nadal standing on the tennis court in Melbourne. Rafael Nadal had signed on to play at the ATP 250 event in Melbourne, which is scheduled to be held from January 3-9, followed by the 2022 Australian Open. If Rafel Nadal does take part in the Australian Open he has a chance to pull ahead of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer in terms of most Grand Slam titles won. 

About the ATP 250 Melbourne tennis event

Rafael Nadal will lead a strong field of players AT THE ATP 250 Melbourne tennis event that also includes former World No. 4 Kei Nishikori, former World No. 5 Kevin Anderson and 2017 ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov. Nadal has not competed since this year's Citi Open, where he lost against Lloyd Harris in the Round of 16. The 20 times Grand Slam champion is currently No. 6 in the ATP Rankings. The main draw of the Melbourne Summer Set begins on January 4 and Rafael Nadal is likely to be top seed at the event. Other players entered in the event include big-serving American Reilly Opelka, Kazakhstani standout Alexander Bublik and US Open quarter-finalist Botic van de Zandschulp.