Rafael Nadal confirms he'll play Madrid Masters, US Open participation still in doubt

Rafael Nadal has been tight-lipped about where and how he will return to the tennis court this year. Last seen lifting the trophy at Acapulco, Nadal has not participated in a single exhibition tournament even as the sport has slowly started limping back amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speculation has been rife about whether the Spaniard will travel to New York to defend his US Open crown, and also about how many claycourt events he will play. But at least part of that has now been answered; Rafael Nadal's presence at the Mutua Madrid Masters this year has been confirmed by his former doubles partner and Madrid tournament director Feliciano Lopez.

We wait for Rafael Nadal with open arms in Madrid: Feliciano Lopez

Rafael Nadal at the Madrid Masters 2019

In a post on his Twitter account on Tuesday, Lopez confirmed that Rafael Nadal will feature at this year's Madrid Masters which is set to start on 13 September.

He hablado con mi amigo @RafaelNadal y me ha confirmado su participación en Madrid el próximo mes de septiembre! ❤️ ¡Te esperamos como siempre con los brazos abiertos en la Caja Mágica! pic.twitter.com/ZWywVEQstO

— Feliciano López (@feliciano_lopez) July 7, 2020

"I talked to my friend @RafaelNadal and he has confirmed his participation in Madrid next September! We wait for you as always with open arms in the Magic Box!" Lopez said.

In response, Nadal replied "See you in Madrid in September!" before adding "Meanwhile everything goes well".

Así es Feli. Nos vemos en septiembre en Madrid 👋🏻💪🏻👍🏻🎾Mientras tanto que todo vaya bien! 😷 https://t.co/wMP0rKaumE

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) July 7, 2020

Rafael Nadal is a five-time champion at Madrid, having won in 2005, 2010, 2013 and 2017. Last year, the Spaniard played in the city while going through a poor run of form, and bowed out in the semifinals to Stefanos Tsitsipas (who ultimately lost to Novak Djokovic in the finals).

Many experts claim that the high-altitude clay court in the capital of Rafael Nadal's home country does not suit him. However, the World No. 2 has been an ever-present feature at the tournament, accumulating a total of 52 wins and 12 losses.

Will Rafael Nadal play the US Open?

Rafael Nadal lifting the 2019 US Open title

The ATP have announced a jam-packed schedule for the restart of the tennis season amid the novel coronavirus outbreak. The calendar is set to cover parts of the American summer hardcourt season as well as the European clay swing, with very little rest period in between.

The ATP has issued a revised provisional calendar that sets a pathway for the resumption of the Tour.The new-look ATP Tour calendar intends to resume on Friday 14 August.

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 17, 2020

There is a lot of doubt about whether the top European players would want to travel to the United States for the Washington Open, Cinicinnati Masters (to be played in New York) and the US Open, only to travel back to Europe for the clay swing. The fact that COVID-19 is still at large in the US, has not helped the case.

Both Nadal's uncle Toni and coach Carlos Moya had said earlier that given the Spaniard's age and physical well-being, it would probably be impossible for him to be present at all the big tournaments. And now that Nadal has confirmed his participation in Madrid, it puts a big question mark over whether he will play the US Open.

The ATP's new ranking system will ensure that Nadal will not be losing any ranking points for the tournaments he misses this year. That coupled with the fact that the transition period from the hardcourts of the US Open to the claycourts of Madrid is just one day, makes it highly possible that Rafael Nadal will give New York a miss.