Nadal has been out of action for 6 months Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will return from injury at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, at the end of December. The world number four has been out of action with a knee injury since January, but now has the opportunity to win a tournament on his return.
Nadal has been given a bye into the second round where he will either face Britain\'s Andy Murray or Serbian Janko Tipsarevic. The competition also features world number one Novak Djokovic, fifth-ranked David Ferrer and Czech Republic\'s Tomas Berdych.
There was confusion regarding Nadal\'s involvement in the tournament, when he told Spanish radio station Onda Cero last week that he was not ready to return. \"I will only come back when I am fit. I won\'t come back worrying about my knee. We are in the last stage of the recovery and I want to recover as soon as possible but I will not rush back and then have to stop again in six months or a year\'s time,\" he said.
However, Nadal confirmed he will be taking part at the event through his Facebook page, writing: \"Can’t wait to get back on court in Abu Dhabi at the end of the month.\"
The 26-year old missed the London Olympics, along with the US Open and the season-ending World Tour championships during a six-month lay off. He returned to practice on November 20.