Rafael Nadal & Novak Djokovic news: What to expect from the duo this week?

Former World No. 1 Rafael Nadal is poised to make his second appearance on the main tour this year. He is included in the entry list for the upcoming Barcelona Open and will square off against Flavio Cobolli in the first round.

Nadal was last seen at the Brisbane International, where he reached the quarterfinals. He beat Dominic Thiem and Jason Kubler in the first two rounds, but just came up short against Jordan Thompson, who defeated Nadal 5-7, 7-6 (6), 6-3.

Despite being sidelined with fitness concerns, the Spaniard has travelled to premier events such as the BNP Paribas Open and tried to prepare himself to compete.

The 37-year-old will make his 17th appearance in the Barcelona Open if everything goes as per plan. He has an outrageous record at the event, capturing 12 titles so far with a 94% win ratio. Nadal's last appearance in Barcelona came in 2021, where he outclassed reigning Monte-Carlo Masters champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the finals.

On the contrary, his fierce rival and World No. 1, Novak Djokovic is expected to miss the Barcelona Open 2024.

After an ordinary start to the season, the Serb hoped to rediscover his form at the Monte-Carlo Masters. He looked sharp in the first few rounds of the tournament, cruising past Lorenzo Musetti and Alex de Minaur in straight sets. However, his run came to an end in the semifinals as eighth seed Casper Ruud outplayed him in a close three-setter.

Not all has gone Djokovic's way since the start of the year and his recent coaching fall out with Goran Ivanisevic added a layer of uncertainity to his preparations. The 36-year-old is expected to next compete in the Madrid Open 2024, which begins on April 22. He is a three-time champion at the Masters 1000 event and reached the semifinals during his last outing in 2022.

Don't want to confirm that I will play, but I hope to: Rafael Nadal on being included in the entry list of Barcelona Open 2024

The Netflix Slam, A Live Netflix Sports Event

Despite being included in the entry list, Rafael Nadal has explained that he is yet to confirm his participation in the upcoming Barcelona Open 2024.

Nadal made a successful return to the men's tour in the Brisbane International. After his quarterfinal exit in the hard court event, he picked up an injury which sidelined him for a few months on tour. Apart from an exhibition match against Carlos Alcaraz in the Netflix Slam, he has not competed at the highest level and has prioritized his recovery.

While he has been included in the main draw of the Barcelona Open, he took to his Instagram account and said that he has is still not sure about his participation. He added, however, that he is hoping to make the final cut at the ATP 500 event.

"Hello from Barcelona 👋🏻 First training session… with the hope of being here these days before the start of the tournament. I'm here to see how it goes... with the desire to try to play. I'll tell you about it. It's important to say that I don't want to confirm that I will play, I hope so. We'll see," Rafael Nadal wrote (translated from Spanish by Instagram).