Rafael Nadal has tested positive to COVID-19.Credit:Getty Images
“I am having some unpleasant moments,but I hope that I will improve little by little. I am now home-bound and have reported the result to those who have been in contact with me,” Nadal said.
Nadal had said after the tournament in Abu Dhabi that he could not guarantee he would make the trip to Melbourne for next month’s Australian Open.
His comeback at the exhibition event – Nadal’s first tournament appearance since August’s Citi Open in Washington – ended in two close defeats by Scot Andy Murray and Canadian Denis Shapovalov.
Nadal,35,spent four months on the sidelines with a foot injury. He was knocked out at Roland Garros in the semi-finals and was forced to pull out of Wimbledon,the Tokyo Olympics and the US Open.
The world number six said he would not have returned to tennis if he did not feel he was competitive enough to challenge for the biggest titles in the sport.
“I am not playing at all for money or just for fun,I am playing to keep achieving goals or at least to enjoy the process to try to achieve my goals,” he added.