Rafael Nadal replaces Jannik Sinner with Marc Lopez

Instead of Melbourne, the 20-time Major champion Rafael Nadal will spend two quarantine weeks in Adelaide, together with Novak Djokovic and Dominic Thiem, his closest rivals.

Nadal should have trained with Jannik Sinner in the Melbourne quarantine's opening week before the organizers decided to change plans and send the world's leading players to Adelaide instead. Sinner will not travel to Adelaide with Rafa, who will travel with his great friend Marc Lopez. Rafa and Marc will share the practice court like many times before, knowing each other for years and playing the doubles tournaments since Doha 2009!

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Nadal and Lopez went all the way to win the title, beating the world's leading doubles players Nenad Zimonjic and Daniel Nestor in the title clash. A year later, Rafa and Marc claimed a massive crown at Indian Wells, toppling Zimonjic and Nestor again. At the beginning of 2011, the Spanish duo went all the way in Doha before losing the Indian Wells semi-final to Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka.

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For the fourth straight year, Rafa and Marc lifted an ATP trophy, conquering Indian Wells for the second time and preparing everything for their ultimate quest at the Rio Olympics in 2016. Nadal and Lopez defeated five teams to go all the way and earn an Olympic glory, eight years after the singles crown that Nadal won in Beijing.