Targets Recovering From Injury Next Month, Nadal: I've Been Training For Almost An Hour And A Half A Day, That's Positive

JAKARTA - Rafael Nadal is targeting to recover from his injury before the exhibition event in Abu Dhabi next month. He is determined to take part in another tournament in preparation for the Australian Open.

World number five Nadal struggled with a back problem earlier this year and withdrew from Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics. He last played in August at the Citi Open in Washington.

Ahead of the US Open, he announced an injury to his left foot would rule him out for the rest of the year, but he said he might return to court in the Mubadala World Tennis Championships exhibition tournament December 16-18.

"My plan is to play against Abu Dhabi in December and a tournament before playing the Australian Open. This is my goal and we are working hard to make it happen," Nadal said at a sponsoring event in Paris on Tuesday.

"I don't know exactly when I will return, but I can say that my goal is to try to return to Abu Dhabi in December, and then, of course, for the start of the new season in January."

"The injury to my leg still needs a bit of healing, but I've been training for almost an hour and a half a day so that's positive," he added.

Nadal will be eyeing a record 21 Grand Slam tournament title at the Australian Open, which is scheduled to start January 17.

Victoria state Prime Minister Daniel Andrews said unvaccinated players would not be allowed to play even though Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said they could play after a 14-day quarantine.