Nadal announces imminent retirement but will play at Barcelona Open

Tennis superstar Rafael Nadal has just held a special press conference at the Barcelona Open to announce that he will be returning to action this week but also confirmed that he considers this his "last Barcelona appearance."

After withdrawing from the Monte Carlo Masters and disappointingly being forced to delay his return and start of the clay season, Nadal went to Barcelona last week so he could get some practice and see where things would go from there. During the weekend, Nadal remained in the tournament player field and his name was drawn when the tournament's main draw was released.

But after it was announced earlier in the morning that Nadal would today hold a special press conference in Barcelona, many feared the worst and that Nadal was about to announce his withdrawal from a tournament once again. Fortunately, that didn't happen as Nadal started the press conference by confirming that he would show up on the court to play against Flavio Cobolli.

"I came here a bit of a last-minute decision because I didn't know if I was going to be able to play. Tomorrow I'll be on the court," Nadal said.

After sustaining a tear in his muscle at the start of his comeback, Nadal also dealt with an abdominal issue in the last few months. That forced Nadal to miss some of the tournaments he wanted to play during his farewell year - the Australian Open and the Masters events in Indian Wells, Miami, and of course his beloved Monte Carlo.