Nadal and Del Potro set to head Thailand Open field
Rafael Nadal has been named as the star attraction of the PTT Thailand Open 2010, while Juan Martin del Potro who has not played a tournament since the Australian Open due to a wrist injury, is also set to play in Bangkok this September.
Nadal was scheduled to play in the post-US Open tournament in 2009 but was forced to withdraw from the event as he recovered from an abdominal injury he’d carried into the year’s final Grand Slam tournament, but the world No. 1 says he’s fit to play this time around.
“With my health and body in good shape, I am really looking forward to playing some great tennis for the Thai fans,” the Spaniard said.
Nadal’s more immediate goal though is completing a career Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows and to that end, his website states the 24-year-old is returning to training today for the first time since completing the French Open-Wimbledon Grand Slam title double at the start of July.
To that end, the left-hander will feature in two hard court tournaments during the summer – the Rogers Cup in Toronto and the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati – as he seeks to manage his workload and ensure he’s in peak condition ahead of the US Open, which begins on August 30th.
Del Potro’s path to the Thailand Open couldn’t be more different to Nadal’s.
While Nadal was achieving unparalleled success on clay this spring, moving through three Masters 1000 tournaments and Roland Garros undefeated before capturing his second Wimbledon Crown, the brakes have been put on the Argentinian’s career in 2010.
The 21-year-old delivered a breakout performance to defeat Roger Federer in the final of last year’s US Open, a title that he’s unlikely to be able to defend as a result of his injury, but his wrist problems have denied him a chance to consolidate his position among the game’s elite in 2010 after reaching a career-high ranking of world No. 4.
“I am looking forward to playing the PTT Thailand Open on my return from injury. I really enjoyed myself on my last visit to Bangkok and hope for good results at this year’s tournament,” said Del Potro, who lost in the first round of the tournament in 2007 in his only previous appearance at the event.
No doubt the 6ft 6in baseliner will be looking to improve on that in 2010, although his expectations should be tempered by his severe lack of competitive court time this year, with Thailand so far scheduled to be his first tournament since the Australian Open this January.
As well as Nadal and del Potro, other early entrants to the Thailand Open are Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez and fast-improving Latvian Ernests Gulbis.
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