Watch: Rafael Nadal greeted by a rapturous Centre Court crowd on his return to Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal made his much-awaited return to the centre court of Wimbledon. The 22-time Grand Slam champion was greeted by a rapturous crowd on his return after three years. The two-time Wimbledon champion is facing Francisco Cerundolo in the first round.

Nadal's participation in this year's Wimbledon was in major doubt due to his chronic foot injury. But he was able to regain fitness just in time and make his return to SW19.

Seeded second, Nadal will be gunning for a mind-boggling 23rd Grand Slam title and his first at SW19 in 12 years, with the Spaniard's last triumph at Wimbledon coming in 2010.

Rafael Nadal is on the hunt for the elusive calendar slam.

Rafael Nadal in action against Francisco Cerundolo on day 2 Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal has had an amazing 2022 so far. He won the 2022 Australian Open by staging an epic two-sets-to-love comeback against Daniil Medvedev to achieve a double career Grand Slam. This was followed by a remarkable 14th French Open title. With the first two majors wrapped up, Nadal is eyeing an elusive calendar Slam.

A calendar Slam is when a tennis player wins all four Majors in a year. The last man to achieve this was the legendary Rod Laver in 1969, while Novak Djokovic fell painfully short last year when he lost the US Open final to Daniil Medvedev.

Rafael Nadal has won the Australian and French Open successively for the first time in his career. This might be his last chance to fight for a calendar Slam, with Nadal himself describing the feat as "crazy" to the media.

“It is crazy to think about completing the Grand Slam after Australia and Roland Garros. I don’t even consider it,” Nadal says. “More than winning the Grand Slam, I would sign up just to be able to play all four tournaments. It is crazy. To win all four, it seems crazy to me because it is something that nobody has done since Rod Laver.”

While Djokovic is the favourite to win a seventh Wimbledon title this year, Nadal will fancy his chances of a third grasscourt Major title. With Matteo Berrettini and Marin Cilic withdrawing from Wimbledon due to COVID-19, the Spaniard's section of the draw opens up significantly for an easier route to the second week of SW19.