United Cup 2024: Spanish Lawn Tennis legend Rafael Nadal has made a sensational return to the Tennis court after a layoff period of 349 days as he defeated Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-1 in the United Cup 2024, at Brisbane. The 37-year old, after almost being one year away from the sport, registered his 1st win in 351 days as he was ruled out with a hip injury that required surgery.
Rafael Nadal has been a fan favourite all his career and has received immense love and blessing during his time off the court.
“Today is an emotional & important day for me. After one of the toughest years of my career I had the chance to come back after a year and play in front of an amazing crowd. I think at a very positive level.. it’s something that makes us feel proud. For all the team, family that’s been there every day the last year,” said Nadal.
“The support is super important. Especially in the low moments, no? I had the chance to receive thousands of messages all year. Having great people next to me every single day makes all the difference without a doubt. I missed being healthy & feeling competitive, playing in front of full crowds like this that have been amazing for my whole career in Australia.. I can’t thank enough everyone,” he added.
Speaking of the match, he laid in lots of praise for his opponent who, too, has been a subject to injury-prone issues his entire career.
“I know Dominic has been going through hard times with injuries too. I’m happy to see him on court. I wish him all the best for the season,” said the legendary tennis player.
The long-time Real Madrid fan with this win, also scripted history as he passed Ivan Lendl for 4th most tour-level wins in history.
- Jimmy Connors - 1274
- Roger Federer - 1251
- Novak Djokovic - 1089
- Rafael Nadal - 1069
“As you can imagine today was not a day I was aware of this statistic. I had enough work just to be focused & come back on court & remember how to play in a professional match,” said Rafael Nadal who was unaware of the fact.