"Besties" Sloane Stephens & Rafael Nadal share a selfie at the Cincinnati Open

Rafael Nadal will be back in action this week at the Western & Southern Open, also known as the Cincinnati Masters, a Masters 1000 event being held in Cincinnati.

Another player to participate in the tournament is the 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens of the United States. The 57th-ranked star has often expressed her admiration for Nadal. She even picked him as her dream mixed-doubles partner once. On Sunday, the 29-year-old ran into the Spaniard in Cincinnati and took the opportunity to click a photograph with him.

"Besties," Stephens wrote as she shared the photo on social media.

Former Belgian player and four-time Grand Slam champion Kim Clijsters responded to Stephens' tweet, suggesting that she could learn Spanish from the 36-year-old.

"He will teach you some Spanish," Clijsters wrote.

World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev and Rafael Nadal are the top two seeds at the Cincinnati Open and could meet in the final. If both players keep advancing through their respective draws, they could write the seventh chapter of their rivalry. The World No. 3 currently leads the head-to-head against the Russian 5-1.

Nadal is returning to the court for the first time since an injury forced him out of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. During his quarterfinal match against America's Taylor Fritz at SW19 last month, the 22-time Grand Slam winner suffered an abdominal muscle tear. Although the Spaniard adjusted his game and won a tough five-setter, he withdrew a day before his scheduled semifinal against Nick Kyrgios.

The Mallorcan was supposed to make a comeback at the just concluded Canadian Open, but he decided not to rush things since his abdominal injury was still troubling him. He announced his withdrawal a couple of days before the tournament began last week.

Also Checkout: Cincinnati Open 2022 Schedule

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“It means a lot to have the opportunity to rise to No. 1" - Rafael Nadal

Rafael Nadal at a pre-tournament press conference

Rafael Nadal has arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio, for the 13th time in his career. Although he has emerged victorious only once in 2013, the 36-year-old could go all the way, given his form this season. Nadal has a 35-3 win-loss record so far and his four titles include the Australian Open and Roland Garros.

There's a slim chance he could enter the 2022 US Open as the World No. 1. The two conditions for that to happen are Nadal lifting the trophy in Cincinnati and Daniil Medvedev exiting before the quarterfinals. Nadal, who is happy that he has a chance, is not worried about the top spot and would rather focus on staying fit.

“It means a lot to me to have that opportunity to rise to No. 1, something that I didn’t expect could happen again," Nadal said. "The main thing is to stay healthy and play the events that I want to play. I will not play more than what I believe works well for my body. I am going to put all my efforts into every single event I play. It is something that doesn’t matter if I have the chance to be No. 1, but I am happy to be in this position and if it happens, I will be very happy.”