Rafael Nadal Adds Rio Olympics Doubles Partner to His Coaching Team Ahead of 2022 Australian Open

Rafael Nadal has been practicing over the past few weeks in order to prepare for the Australian tennis summer in January next year. The Spaniard, who had to skip the US Open due to a foot injury, underwent treatment at home and took adequate rest before hitting the courts.

Now, Nadal is adding a new member to his coaching staff ahead of the ATP tour next year. Marc Lopez, who won the gold medal alongside the Spaniard in 2016 Rio Olympics, will join Carlos Moya and Francis Roig in Rafa’s coaching staff.

Rafael Nadal is all set to add another member to his coaching staff

Spanish sports website Marca reported the news. All the three(Moya, Roig, and Lopez) got together to prepare Rafael Nadal for 2022. The former world no.1 is yet to make the news official.

Marc Lopez’s coaching experience involves compatriot Feliciano Lopez. The two announced their partnership before the start of ATP season last year. Both the players have known each other for quite a long time and they had played a lot of matches together.

Coming to Nadal, he is all set to make an entry at the Mubadala World Tennis Championships in Abu Dhabi next week, where he plays an exhibition match against Dominic Thiem.

Tennis – A Day at the Drive Exhibition – Memorial Drive Tennis Club, Adelaide, Australia – January 29, 2021 Austria’s Dominic Thiem and Spain’s Rafael Nadal pose for a photograph after each receiving a boomerang after their match REUTERS/Morgan Sette

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Both the players, who were away from the game for some time this year, will take this as an opportunity to assess their fitness before the 2022 season starts.

Nadal signed up to play warm-up events in Melbourne ahead of 2022 Australian Open

Also, Nadal signed up for the warm-up tournaments in Melbourne before the ‘happy slam’ starts. Through this, the Spaniard is hoping to get more practice and get used to the conditions. Last year, Nadal was ousted in the quarter-finals by Stefanos Tsitsipas in a five-set thriller.

The Spaniard enjoyed a successful European clay-court run this year as he won titles at Barcelona and Rome before the start of the French Open. But, world no.1 Novak Djokovic ended Nadal’s hopes of winning Roland Garros for a record 14th time.

Tennis – French Open – Roland Garros, Paris, France – June 11, 2021 Serbia’s Novak Djokovic shakes hands with Spain’s Rafael Nadal after winning their semi final match REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

The Serbian star went on to clinch his 19th Grand Slam title in Paris by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final. If all goes well, fans might get to watch both Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic lock horns once again at the 2022 Australian Open.

Also read: “Giving Him Tools to Untrap”: Coach Opens Up on Hubert Hurkacz’s Match Against Roger Federer

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