Rafael Nadal Brisbane injury update

• He lost to Jordan Thompson in the quarter-final of the ATP 250 event.
• The Spaniard said that his muscles were only supercharged and not injured
• He is still not sure he will make it for the Australian Open in a week

Rafael Nadal Brisbane injury update is nothing to be scared off, he told his fans.

Despite being in a very similar situation last year in Australia, Nadal has disclosed that his latest physical drawback in Brisbane is not a hip injury.

He lost to Jordan Thompson in the quarter-final of the ATP 250 event. The 37-year-old said that his return to action in Brisbane was positive.

The Spaniard said that his muscles were only supercharged and not injured as many thought. Still, he put up a brave fight in the match that lasted three hours and 24 minutes.

World No. 5 Thompson defeated Nadal 7-5, 6-7(6), 3-6 ending his impressive run at the event. Nadal had earlier defeated Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-1, and Jason Kubler 6-1, 6-2 in his opening two singles matches in his comeback event.

The formidable Mallorcan seemed poised to secure another victory against Thompson, securing a spot in the semi-finals.

However, he couldn’t capitalize on the three match-point opportunities he generated in the second set. Nadal, experiencing discomfort in his hip area, took a break to receive treatment when trailing 1-4 in the deciding set.

Rafael Nadal Brisbane Injury Update

During his post-match press conference, Nadal clarified that he experienced pain in his right hip. However, he emphasized that the sensation was distinct from the drastic pain he experienced in 2023.

Rafael Nadal. Photo/The Times

He explained that it was his injured tendon that gave him problems at the Australian Open in 2023. What is different now is that the discomfort he felt was in his muscle.

“I feel more muscle. Last year was tendon. I feel the muscle tired. I mean, for sure is not the same like last year at all because when it happened last year, I felt something drastic immediately,” he stated.

He admitted to feeling scared at first because it was just around the hip which gave him memories of how painful it was a year ago.

“Today I didn’t feel anything. The only problem is because the place is the same, you are a little bit more scared than usual. In ideal world, I mean, is just the muscle supercharged after a few days of effort and a very tough match. That’s will be the ideal thing, something that we know that can happen today.”

Just like he said earlier, his main goal is ensuring that he remains very competitive based on the information he has from his medical team.

Nadal is happy with his performance at the Brisbane International Open because it gives him a ray of hope.

Rafael Nadal Expectation

Rafael Nadal at the Brisbane International. Photo/Sportsnet

With nearly a year out of action, his body has changed in many ways including its responsiveness.

He is now hoping that what he felt when playing with Thompson is nothing more than a supercharged muscle acting up.

“A lot of things can be happening in a body like my body after a year without playing tennis. So hopefully is just that, just a muscle that is supercharged. Is a normal process on that. If that’s the thing, thing everything perfect.

He further noted that the only thing he wants is playing well and not so much win as many people want to think.

“As I said, I didn’t came here to win tournaments now, no? I just came here to try to come back and do it in a positive way. It was a very positive way.”

Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion said that he feels energized to play at the Australian Open.

However, this depends on how his doctors diagnose and advise him. He is not sure how things go for him in the next couple of days heading to Melbourne.