Nadal looked sharp on court and appeared to have no issues with his movement after the long lay-off for a hip problem
The 22-time Grand Slam champion has undergone surgery twice in 2023 after struggling with a hip injury.
Djokovic will spearhead Serbia at the tournament from December 29-January 7 in Sydney and Perth as he builds towards the defence of his Australian Open title.
While Novak Djokovic reclaimed the World No. 1 ranking from Carlos Alcaraz after winning a record 23rd Grand Slam title at the French Open, there were clear signs of the end of an era as Rafael Nadal dropped out of the top 100 and reached his worst position in the rankings since March of 2003, when he was just a 16-year-old.
Nadal has been struggling with a hip injury he suffered at the Australian Open in January, and fears the Spaniard may miss the Paris Grand Slam grew after he pulled out of this week's Italian Open
The 19-year-old brushed aside Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 to add the Barcelona trophy to wins in Buenos Aires and Indian Wells in 2023. He now has nine career titles
Sporting greats Lionel Messi and Rafael Nadal on Instagram backed each other on to win the 2023 Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award.
Rafael Nadal launched his Australian Open title defence with a four-set victory over Britain's Jack Draper as home hope Nick Kyrgios exited through injury without hitting a ball.
Five top contenders for the men's title at the Australian Open, which starts on Monday:
Nadal looked sharp on court and appeared to have no issues with his movement after the long lay-off for a hip problem
The 22-time Grand Slam champion has undergone surgery twice in 2023 after struggling with a hip injury.
Djokovic will spearhead Serbia at the tournament from December 29-January 7 in Sydney and Perth as he builds towards the defence of his Australian Open title.
While Novak Djokovic reclaimed the World No. 1 ranking from Carlos Alcaraz after winning a record 23rd Grand Slam title at the French Open, there were clear signs of the end of an era as Rafael Nadal dropped out of the top 100 and reached his worst position in the rankings since March of 2003, when he was just a 16-year-old.
Nadal has been struggling with a hip injury he suffered at the Australian Open in January, and fears the Spaniard may miss the Paris Grand Slam grew after he pulled out of this week's Italian Open
The 19-year-old brushed aside Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 to add the Barcelona trophy to wins in Buenos Aires and Indian Wells in 2023. He now has nine career titles
Sporting greats Lionel Messi and Rafael Nadal on Instagram backed each other on to win the 2023 Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award.
Rafael Nadal launched his Australian Open title defence with a four-set victory over Britain's Jack Draper as home hope Nick Kyrgios exited through injury without hitting a ball.
Five top contenders for the men's title at the Australian Open, which starts on Monday:
Rafa Nadal will head into the Australian Open undercooked and with only one win to his name since September's U.S. Open, but it would surprise nobody if he retained the title he won for the second time last year.