World No. 2 Rafael Nadal will play at the Shanghai Masters despite being diagnosed with appendicitis, the Spaniard said at his second tournament since his latest injury layoff. The 14-times Grand Slam champion said he visited a hospital in China’s commercial hub on Sunday after suffering from stomach pains, and was diagnosed with the condition.
He was then given a course of antibiotics which has relieved the pains and helped avoid immediate surgery. “It seems like everything is under control now. The normal thing (is) for the improvement to continue,” Nadal told reporters in Shanghai.
The 28-year-old said he was advised that sooner or later he would need surgery, but was keen to compete in the tournament. “I am in Shanghai. I am here to play a tournament. If I don’t play, I don’t have the possibility to win. So that’s it,” he said.
Nadal practised for 45 minutes at Shanghai’s Qizhong Tennis Center yesterday, as he prepared for his opening match against compatriot Feliciano Lopez today evening. He arrived in Shanghai on Saturday after competing at the China Open, where he crashed out in the quarter-finals to Slovak qualifier Martin Klizan.
Before Beijing, Nadal had not played competitively since he lost to 19-year-old Australian Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon. He was then struck down in training by a right wrist injury which forced him to miss the US Open.