Rafael Nadal Tests Positive For Covid-19, May Miss Australian Open

Tennis star Rafael Nadal, 35, has tested positive for COVID-19. It is not known which strain. Nadal returned to Spain after playing in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship exhibition event in Abu Dhabi, in which he lost both his matches. Nadal had been testing every two days while in Abu Dhabi, and even had his test come back negative on Friday.

He announced that his PCR test came back positive on Twitter today.

“As a consequence of the situation, I have to have total flexibility with my calendar and I will analyze my options depending on my evolution,” Nadal wrote. “I will keep you informed of any decisions about my future tournaments.”

Nadal hasn’t appeared in a tournament since August, as he’s been working his way back from a foot injury that forced him to pull out of the U.S. Open and miss Wimbledon.

It is unclear if he will be back for the Australian Open, the first grand slam of the 2022 season. It is scheduled to begin on January 22. Nadal was undecided about the Australian Open even before testing positive for COVID.

“I cannot guarantee Australia 100 percent because I need to go home and see how the body responds after these days,” he said. “I have time to make a decision. At this point in my career, I need to go day by day, study each movement well.”

It also depends on the severity of Nadal’s COVID symptoms.

“I am experiencing some unpleasant moments but I hope that I will improve little by little,” he wrote. “I am now confined at home and have informed those people who have been in contact with me of the result.”