This content was published 3 years ago. It may refer to a past edition of the Internazionali d’Italia.

Rafael Nadal was in action at the Foro Italico on Friday, taking to the practice court in preparation for the Internazionali BNL d’Italia which gets underway on Monday. It will be the Spaniard’s first tournament since he won the title at Acapulco in February.

The world No.2 is the defending Italian Open champion having defeated Novak Djokovic in a pulsating three-set final last year to lift the trophy in Rome for the ninth time.

Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev, who have reached the US Open final in New York on Sunday, have withdrawn from the tournament.

The draw for the Internazionali BNL d’Italia will take place on Saturday afternoon.