With just the Brisbane International under his belt in 2024, questions have been raised over Rafael Nadal’s future this season.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion was forced to withdraw from this week’s Monte Carlo Masters, but there is growing hope that a comeback is imminent.
Earlier this week, Nadal disclosed on social media that he was training in Barcelona and would try to play.
Additionally, earlier on Saturday, video appeared showing the 12-time champion in Barcelona, Rafael Nadal, defeating the second seed and world No. 6 Andrey Rublev, 6-1, in a practice set.
During the draw ceremony on Saturday, the 37-year-old remained reticent to fully commit to playing or not, but he now knows that if he is fit, he will take on Flavio Cobolli on Tuesday.
Rising talent Cobolli, an Italian who is 21 years old, has a 9-8 win-loss record for 2024 and is now just one position behind his career-high ranking of 62nd.
But if he plays and prevails in that match, Nadal may have a more difficult challenge in the second round when he faces world No. 10 and fourth seed Alex de Minaur.
Though not regarded as a natural clay court player, Australian de Minaur is playing at the peak of his game right now and will enter Barcelona fresh from a confidence-boosting run to the final eight in Monte Carlo.
Sixth seed Ugo Humbert or eleventh seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina are potential opponents for Nadal or de Minaur in the quarterfinals, while sixteenth seed Arthur Fils might be waiting for them in the third round.
In the singles draw, Carlos Alcaraz has the top seed and will seek to win the tournament for the third time in a row following his own withdrawal from Monte Carlo.
If he plays, world No. 3 will start against either Zhizhen Zhang or Luca Van Assche, with a round one bye awarded to the top eight finishers.
Alcaraz may face 15th seed Borna Coric in the third round. On paper, he might face fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals, whom he defeated in the previous year’s championship match.
Third-seeded Casper Ruud will take on Alexandre Muller or Albert Ramos Vinolas, while second-seeded Rublev will begin his campaign against Dan Evans or Brandon Nakashima.
