Reilly Opelka gears up for comeback; shares timeline of prolonged injury struggles

Reilly Opelka is looking to make his return to tennis following an injury layoff that has spanned over a year.

The American was last seen in action during the 2022 Citi Open in Washington where he reached the Round of 16 before losing 7-6(1), 6-2 to eventual champion Nick Kyrgios.

Opelka has since been out of action due to injuries on his hip and wrist. His prolonged absence from the ATP Tour has seen him fall out of the rankings.

However, the American looks to make a return to tennis as he claimed that he was hoping to play at the Charlottesville Men's Pro Challenger, which starts on October 30.

"Hoping to play in Charlottesville in 10 days," Opelka wrote while answering a fan's question regarding his comeback on Instagram.

The 26-year-old recently shared a few images on his Instagram that looked like a timeline of his injury struggles. The images included Opelka with a cast and one of him with crutches, which also had Tommy Paul who even tried on his crutches.

The former top-15 player also had an image of himself training and one of Paul signing the cast on his right hand. The final picture was one of Opelka sitting without a cast.

"Storms don't last," Opelka captioned his post.

Opelka lately called for the ban of Adderall in tennis, likening the drug to steroids.

"Ban Adderall," the American wrote on Instagram while responding to a fan's question about making a change in tennis apart from getting rid of doubles.

He then justified his comment by likening Adderall to steroids.

"My comment applies to professional tennis in particular. But some players have a hard time building strength... should they be allowed to take steroids?" Reilly Opelka stated.

Reilly Opelka won 21 out of 36 matches during the 2022 season

Reilly Opelka in action at the 2022 Washington Open

The 2022 season is Opelka's most recent one and he finished it with 21 wins out of 36 matches. The American won two titles, the first of which came at the Dallas Open after beating compatriot Jenson Brooksby 7-6(5), 7-6(3) in the final.

His second title came at the US Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston following a 6-3, 7-6(7) triumph over John Isner in the final. This was Opelka's first title on clay.

In Grand Slams, the American's best performance was reaching the third round of the Australian Open. He also reached the second round at Wimbledon while suffering a first-round elimination at the French Open.