Feliciano Lopez picks Rafael Nadal over Carlos Alcaraz in his ideal Davis Cup singles team

Feliciano Lopez, the director of the 2023 Davis Cup Finals, recently chose Rafael Nadal over Carlos Alcaraz in his ideal Spanish team for the tournament's singles rubbers.

Nadal has not stepped onto the court since his disappointing exit in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open back in January and is currently going through an extended injury rehab,

The 22-time Grand Slam winner was supposed to make a comeback in the Davis Cup Finals later in the knockouts and was absent from Spain's group stage matches. However, with his team failing to advance to the knockout stage, those comeback dreams have been quashed.

Meanwhile, Carlos Alcaraz was named to the Spanish squad with the expectation that he would lead his country as the highest-ranked player. However, the youngster withdrew from the tournament after losing to Daniil Medvedev in the 2023 US Open semifinals.

Feliciano Lopez sat down for an interview with Punto de Break and selected his ideal Davis Cup singles team for the Spanish squad. He chose Rafael Nadal over World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz as the first participant and David Ferrer as the second.

"From what I have seen, yes, of course. Alcaraz I imagine that he is going to win many games in this competition, but so far I have only seen one of him. From what I have experienced, I would put Nadal and Ferrer in the individual, that is clear to me," Lopez said.

He chose Fernando Verdasco and Marc Lopez for the doubles section while stating that the Mallorcan and Lopez would make a formidable team.

"In the doubles there would be more options, because I played well with Fernando (Verdasco) for a time, I could also play with Marc (López), Marc and Rafa would also be a brutal couple," Feliciano Lopez said.

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When will Rafael Nadal make a comeback?

The Spaniard pictured at the 2023 Australian Open

As previously discussed, Rafael Nadal was supposed to make a comeback for Spain in the 2023 Davis Cup Finals, but that will not be happening anymore. That begs the question of when he will finally return to the court.

After crashing out of the Australian Open, the Spaniard has missed all three other Grand Slams this year: the French Open, where he has won 14 titles to date, the Wimbledon Championships, and the US Open.

While the 22-time Major champion has not said anything, his uncle Toni has revealed that his nephew is recovering well from hip surgery and that, if all goes well, he could be back in action at the 2024 Australian Open.

"Rafa is good, recovering. If all goes well he wants to return to the court for the 2024 Australian Open," the veteran coach told El Desmarque.