Rafael Nadal’s return: When is his first match at Brisbane International? Who is he playing? Is this his last year?

The 22-time Grand Slam will be returning to competitive action for the first time since January 18, 2023 at the Brisbane International this week.

Nadal underwent surgery in June and now looks set to be starting his last year on tour.

The 37-year-old, now ranked at No. 672 in the world, will enter the Australian Open and in the summer will hope to add to his Grand Slam tally at the French Open, where he is a 14-time champion.

When will Nadal start his return? Will this really be his last season? Where will he be ranked for the Australian Open? And who is he playing first? We answer all the questions you might have…

Nadal will play his first singles match in nearly a year at the Brisbane International on Monday, January 1.

He was given a wild card to play at the tournament and headlines the draw along with unlikely doubles pairing Holger Rune and Andy Murray.

Nadal is unseeded and has been handed a spicy opener against former US Open champion Dominic Thiem.

If Nadal wins he will face eighth seed Aslan Karatsev or Australian wild card Jason Kubler in the second round. He could meet fourth seed Ugo Humbert in the quarter-finals.

Nadal will also play in the doubles alongside Marc Lopez.

It will be the first time Nadal has played doubles since the 2022 Laver Cup when he teamed up with Roger Federer in his farewell match.

Nadal is set to return to the Australian Open.

He is a two-time winner in Melbourne and memorably lifted the trophy in 2022 after four months out with injury.

He was beaten in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open by Mackenzie McDonald.

Nadal will not be among the 32 seed at the Australian Open.

He is currently ranked at No. 672 in the world but is entering the Australian Open with a protected ranking.

A protected ranking can be designated to a player when they are injured and unable to compete for at least six months. The position of the ranking is determined by the player’s average ranking position during the first three months of their injury.

However, a player using a protected ranking won’t be considered among the seeds.

That means Nadal could be drawn to face Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, or any of the seeds in the first round of the Australian Open.

Nadal’s post-Australian Open schedule has not been confirmed.

The tour heads around the world in February, with ATP 500 events in Rotterdam, Rio de Janeiro, Acapulco and Dubai.

Then in March there are the first Masters 1000 tournaments of the season in Indian Wells and Miami. Nadal has not played in Miami since 2017 and has only played Indian Wells twice in the last six years, but this could be his last chance to play both events.

The main focus for Nadal, though, is likely be the clay season.

He is already signed up to play in Barcelona, which starts on April 15. The week before there is the Monte Carlo Masters, then there are Masters events in Madrid and Rome before the French Open, where Nadal is a 14-time champion.

The tennis event at the Olympics at Roland-Garros starts on July 27.

Nadal curbed expectations that he could compete for major titles in 2024 when speaking about his potential return in September.

“I want to be back on the court and compete, but I’m not expecting to come back and win Roland-Garros and Australia,” he said.

But now he is stepping back on court, it’s hard not to think about Nadal going for a 15th triumph at the French Open in the summer.

“There are a lot of unknowns that will become clear with time, but of course Roland-Garros is a tournament that he is extremely passionate about, as he is for the whole clay swing, which is his favourite time of the year,” said coach Carlos Moya.

Nadal has won 92 singles titles, with his last coming at the 2022 French Open.

“What’s really possible, is to try to enjoy the comeback to the courts. I don’t expect much. Honestly, the only thing that I expect is to be able to go on court, to feel competitive and to give my best,” he said.

“It’s going to be a tough process at the beginning. At the end, it’s one year without being on the tennis court and I just have been practising for the last month in a very good intensity.

“I don’t say that nothing is impossible, but just to be here is a victory.”

The signs seem to be pointing to Nadal playing his last season on the ATP Tour, although it has not been confirmed.

“If everything goes well, and he endures, why not continue? If he enjoys it, has a good time and it’s what he likes to do, why not?

“But there are too many unknowns right now to say where we will be in a year. Anything can happen.”

Nadal said similar in December when announcing his comeback.

“There are chances that it may only be half a year, there are possibilities that it may be a full year, there are possibilities that we may not be able to reach all that,” he said.

“These are things right now that I do not have the capacity to be able to answer, this is the truth. I am only in conditions to say that I return to compete that I continue having in my head that the normal thing or that there are many possibilities, that it is my last year, and I am going to enjoy the tournaments in that way.”

It seems like the Olympics will be a goal for Nadal, who won singles gold in 2008 and doubles gold in 2016.

The tennis event at Paris 2024 will be held at Roland-Garros, where Nadal has won 14 of his 22 Grand Slam titles.