Rafael Nadal continues training ahead of comeback, wishes fans on Easter

Rafael Nadal continues to put in the hard yards on the practice court, recently sharing a video of himself practicing his serve in full flow. The Spanish tennis great also wished his fans and followers on the occasion of Easter.

Nadal was set to make his comeback at next week's Monte-Carlo Masters and his increased intensity in training over the past couple of weeks suggested he compete in Monte-Carlo. However, he withdrew from the tournament earlier this week, admitting that he is still not match-fit and needs some more time on the training courts.

The Spaniard has been sharing regular updates about his practice on social media and the most recent one saw him trying to perfect his serve on the clay-court at his academy in Mallorca.

"Happy Easter and...work in progress," he wrote on Instagram.

The Spanish star continues to train at his academy. (Image via Instagram).

Nadal is expected to make a comeback at the Barcelona Open, which begins on April 15, where he has won a staggering 12 titles. He will also be keen to improve his ranking as soon as he returns to the tour, having dropped to No. 14 in the ATP rankings. The 36-year-old last played at the Australian Open, where he picked up a hip injury. Barring the French Open, where he won his 14th title in 2022, the Spaniard has only 270 ranking points to defend during the rest of the clay-court swing.

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Rafael Nadal will win French Open 2023, predicts Dominic Thiem

The Spanish great will bid for a record-exending 15th title at the French Open.

Dominic Thiem has picked Rafael Nadal to win the 2023 French Open, thus defending his title and winning his 15th crown at Roland Garros. Thiem has faced the Spaniard in two finals at the French Open in the past, losing both of those finals in 2018 and 2019, respectively. Speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing Estoril Open, Thiem made his prediction.

"I'll go for Nadal there," Thiem told ATP.

Meanwhile, the Spanish great is the only male player in the Open Era to win at least 10 titles in four different tournaments. Along with his 14 French Open crowns, he has won 12 titles at the Barcelona Open, 11 at the Monte-Carlo Masters, and 10 at the Italian Open.

The Mallorca native is looking for his first title on tour since winning the 2022 French Open and will fancy his chances of ending the drought by winning a 13th Barcelona title.