Rafael Nadal's sister Maribel expresses delight at the Spaniard's winning return to tennis at Brisbane International 2024

Rafael Nadal won his first professional tennis match in nearly a year in scintillating fashion, downing Dominic Thiem 7-5, 6-1 to reach the second round of the 2024 Brisbane International on Tuesday, January 2.

A horde of fans and tennis personalities rushed to congratulate the 37-year-old on his victorious return to the game. One name, however, stood out amongst them.

Maria Isabel 'Maribel' Nadal, one of the Spaniard's biggest cheerleaders, was seemingly elated at her brother's performance during his Brisbane opener. She took to her Instagram stories to repost a congratulatory message from the 22-time Major winner's tennis academy with a couple of emojis.

Maribel via Instagram stories

The 35-year-old also expressed her happiness at Nadal's winning return in the replies to his latest Instagram post.

"Vamoosss," Maribel wrote, followed by two clapping emojis, a heart emoji and a love eyes emoji.

Maribel's comment via Instagram

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A look into Rafael Nadal's sister Maribel's life and career

Maria Isabel is Rafael Nadal's younger sister. Although Maribel has been occasionally seen in the Spaniard's players' box during big tournaments, she is known to be shy and discreet.

The 35-year-old holds a degree in sports management, which comes in handy as she manages the famed Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca as a marketing and sales head. She also recently launched her men’s clothing brand, "Crabs Company".

Maribel playing tennis at the Mallorca Country Club in 2022

Maribel also seemingly knows the ins and outs of tennis, going by a video of her playing pickleball from November last year. She even featured in a viral video with her older brother three years ago, where both siblings were rallying in their backyard with a sofa as the net.

Maribel also won an exhibition tournament for local celebrities at the Mallorca Country Club in 2022. The event was organized by her uncle Toni, who guided Rafael to 14 Major titles.

The 35-year-old was last spotted in public at Rafael Nadal's fourth-round match against Frances Tiafoe at the 2022 US Open. She and her team were overheard shouting "caffeine" at him during the fourth set so that he could rejuvenate his energy reserves.

This ploy, however, failed to work as Nadal lost in four sets to his American opponent. Incidentally, he suffered from a patch of bad luck from that match onwards, losing six of his next eight matches before calling time on his 2023 season due to a hip injury.