Rafa Nadal to return in new year

14 time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal successfully underwent surgery to remove his appendix on Monday and is expected to leave hospital within 24 hours.

After the surgery Nadal said on Facebook “Everything went great.Thank you very much for your support. Big hug!”

After losing at the quarter finals stage of the Swiss indoors, the world number three confirmed a couple of weeks ago that he wouldn’t be playing again in 2014 due to his impending operation.

“If I play the last two tournaments, I would not be competitive and would have no chance to win.  It is better for me to recover. I hope to be back at the start of 2015 ready for anything.”

The 28 year old Spaniard missed last week’s Paris Masters and will not appear at the ATP World Tour Finals which begin in London on Sunday. He hopes to return to pre-season training at the end of November and into action at the World Tennis Championship exhibition event in Abu Dhabi from 1-3 January.

He has played only seven matches since Wimbledon and began taking antibiotics in October to treat appendicitis.

“Rafa (is) feeling well, surgery went well, if everything goes as planned out of the hospital tomorrow (Tuesday),” his management company B1PR also revealed on Twitter.