Rafael Nadal will look to see how his back holds up as he makes his return to the courts, with the Spaniard saying it has been a difficult issue to resolve.
Nadal injured his back during last yearās Australian Open final and was bothered by the injury occasionally during the season. "I did a lot of treatment on my back sinceĀ Australia," he told Sport 360 in Abu Dhabi, where he will be playing an exhibition event this week. "Some worked for a few weeks, other onesĀ for a little bit longerā¦ one didnāt work. WeĀ always tried to fix the things we need to fix toĀ be competing at 100 percent."
The world No. 3 had stem-cell therapy on his back in the offseason, a relatively novel procedure that has caused some controversy. Nadal would not go into details about his medical issues, but was optimistic about the newest approach.
"I had different treatments on my backĀ and I am not able to talk about all of them asĀ I donāt have the information on all," he said. "To talk about that you have to talk to theĀ doctor. Because I am not ready to talk aboutĀ these kind of things as I donāt have the wholeĀ information.
"They were done with different doctors andĀ sometimes it worked well and sometimesĀ not. And in the case of my back, it was toughĀ to find the real thing that helped me, and IĀ hope that the last one would be a positiveĀ one."
However, Nadal has indicated he is ready to return, having increased his training in the weeks leading up to the exhibition. "In general, the feeling physically is okayĀ and I hope to be ready to compete well," he said.
Nadal insists that his injury-plagued season, during which he also withdrew from the U.S. Open with a wrist injury, has not dampened his attitude, though the 28-year-old has suggested he will now be more selective with his schedule. "Iām a very happy guy. I have aĀ great family around me, a lot of friends," he said. "Many people areĀ in a much more negative condition than me.ā