Rafael Nadal not ready to make his return as he pulls out of Qatar Open

Nadal had been expected to make his return at the ATP 250 tournament in Doha starting on February 19th after the Spaniard's name appeared on the entry list.

"I would have loved to play in Doha, where the tournament team, as well as the amazing Qatar fans have always supported me greatly. Unfortunately I am not ready to compete," Nadal said on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

He added he is hoping to be fit for the exhibition against fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz in Las Vegas on March 3rd before making his ATP comeback at Indian Wells a few days later.

The former world number one returned to action in Brisbane after spending almost a year out on the sidelines with a hip flexor injury sustained at last year's Australian Open.

He did not compete again last season after undergoing surgery in June and his comeback in Brisbane was cut short after he suffered an upper left leg issue during his quarter-final outing.