Watch: Rafael Nadal hits big groundstrokes and shows off new sleeveless outfit in a video from his practice session in Indian Wells
Rafael Nadal took to Instagram earlier on Sunday to post a video of one of his practice sessions at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden. The Spaniard donned a sleeveless T-shirt as he polished his groundstrokes, possibly hinting towards a return to his signature outfit later this season.
Pretty ideal Sunday morning if you ask us π
Welcome back to Stadium 1, @RafaelNadal πͺπΈπͺ https://t.co/hbdChx1Djm
@RafaelNadal IG Story 06 March https://t.co/E5PJKoK8Lb
The Spaniard is currently in sublime form, if his latest Instagram story is anything to go by. In the video, he can be seen wearing a deep yellow sleeveless shirt while making some big cuts on the ball. The speed of the hardcourts at Indian Wells stands out in particular; the ball appears to be in the 35-year-old's strikezone, giving him a lot of time on his groundstrokes before he fires away.
It should also be noted that the dry air in Indian Wells ensures that Nadal's top-spin forehand has a loopier mid-air trajectory. Many of his fans were in absolute delight at the Spaniard's baseline game as they uploaded videos of his practice session.
"Pretty ideal Sunday morning if you ask us, Welcome back to Stadium 1!" the Twitter handle of the Indian Wells wrote, welcoming the 21-time Major winner.
Nadal later took to Instagram to express elation at being able to play in "Tennis Paradise," a moniker often used for the hardcourt event in the Californian desert.
"Tennis paradise, here we are!" he wrote.
Nadal made a successful return from a foot injury by winning his first title of the year at the Melbourne Summer Set. He then made history in the following weeks; the Spaniard came back from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev to clinch his first Australian Open title since 2009, in the process breaking the Open Era record for most Slams won by a male player.
He then continued his unbeaten streak with another title-winning run in Acapulco last month, where he again beat Medvedev en route to the title. The 21-time Major winner will be keen to extend his season's 15-0 win-loss record at the Indian Wells Masters, which is scheduled to kick off on 10 March.
Rafael Nadal brings back his signature sleeveless look
A fan named "DimiChard", meanwhile, claimed on their Twitter handle that Nadal will soon be releasing a new line of sleeveless Nike Court T-shirts.
#Vamos #RafaelNadal #Nike #NikeCourtGood news Rafan/Rafam! The sleeveless will be making a come back!!! Details soonβ¦ππ #Vamos #RafaelNadal #Nike #NikeCourt
For academic purposes, the 21-time Major winner sported a similar sleeveless T-shirt during his participation at the 2019 Australian Open, where he lost in the final to arch-rival Novak Djokovic in straight sets.
The Spaniard wore his signature sleeveless outfit from 2004-08, before turning to a crew T-shirt in 2009. He wore sleeveless T-shirts sporadically at the 2018 and 2019 Australian Open and US Open.