Rafael Nadal's full schedule for the 2017 ATP season has been revealed, and by the look of it, it will really be a hectic year for the Manacor Bull as he targets a comeback on top of the word rankings.
Nadal, who recently attended a gala in Madrid to promote his latest suit for Tommy Hilfiger, is apparently determined to back up his words of recapturing the top of the tennis world.
Next year, Nadal is scheduled to appear in 19 tournaments, not including the pre-season tourney in Abu Dhabi this December and the ATP World Tour finals, which he needs to qualify for him to compete.
The 14-time Grand Slam champion stressed that he's ready to take on the next challenge after yet another disappointing year of tennis. After back-to-back wins in Monte Carlo and Barcelona, Nadal once again fizzled down due to inconsistency and injuries as the season progressed.
Nadal is aware that he will not only compete with fellow members of the Fabled Big 4 (Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Roger Federer), but also a group of up-and-coming players ready to prove that they are ready for primetime.
"I don't know what will happen, I can't predict the future. Murray had an amazing final part of the season but I suppose that players who didn't win a Slam so far, it means the younger players, want to do it," Nadal said via World Tennis USA
"It's an Era of transition where two good generations combine together. Mine won a lot, four players of almost the same age did so many great things. Now it comes a high level new generation that every year will be even more competitive and ready to fight for important things."
Here's the full 2017 schedule for Rafael Nadal:
29-31 DECEMBER 2016: Mubadala World Tennis Championship, Abu Dhabi - exhibition match
JANUARY: Brisbane International (1 -8 January), Australian Open (16 - 29 January)
FEBRUARY: Rotterdam (13 - 19 February), Acapulco (February 27 - March 4)
MARCH: Indian Wells (March 6 - 19), Miami (March 20 - April 2)
APRIL: Monte-Carlo (April 15 - 23), Barcelona (April 22 - 30)
MAY: Madrid (May 5 - 14), Rome (May 10 - 21), Roland Garros (May 22 - June 11)
JUNE: Wimbledon
JULY: Montreal, Cincinnati, US Open
SEPTEMBER: Beijing, Shanghai
OCTOBER: Basel, Paris
NOVEMBER: ATP World Tour Finals