IN PHOTOS: Rafael Nadal and Ben Shelton practice together at Brisbane International ahead of Spaniard's long-awaited return

Tennis fans all around the world are ecstatic as Rafael Nadal makes his comeback at the Brisbane International. Before his much-awaited comeback, he was seen practicing with American up-and-coming star Ben Shelton.

The pictures of their practice session were recently uploaded on social media, giving fans a glimpse of two generations of lefties linking up for a practice session.

Nadal looked as fit as ever as he wore a sleeveless red top, giving deja vu of a young Nadal. Many people can be seen standing around the court to watch the duo practice and get a glimpse of the Spaniard playing tennis after almost a year.

The 22-time Grand Slam winner's last competitive match was at the 2023 Australian Open where he lost to USA's Mackenzie McDonald. His hip injury kept him out for the rest of the season.

Nadal's ranking dropped out of the Top 10 for the first time in 18 years, ending the longest Top 10 streak in ATP. He also dropped out of the Top 100 after he could not play at the 2023 French Open. This was the first time since 2003 that Nadal was out of the Top 100. He is currently ranked 670 in the world.

Rafael Nadal's comeback match

Rafael Nadal at a training session at the Brisbane International

Rafael Nadal returned to the tennis court after almost a year at the Brisbane International, when he teamed up with Marc Lopez for a doubles match. They were drawn against the Australian pair of Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson, who got the better of the Spanish duo, defeating them 6-4,6-4.

His first singles match will be against the former US Open champion Dominic Theim, who himself was sidelined by injury in 2021. He has been struggling with form issues since then, and had to play qualifiers for the main draw at Brisbane International.

Thiem defeated James Mccabe in an enthralling three sets in the first qualifier match. At one point during the match, the Austrian saw himself 2-6,3-5(0-40) down. But he came back to defeat Mccabe. He also defeated Giulio Zeppieri in three sets in the second qualifier to seal his spot in the main draw.

Nadal has a Head-to-head of 9-6 against Thiem. But the Austrian has managed to get the better of him in their last two meetings at the ATP finals group stage in 2020 and the 2020 Australian Open quarterfinals.