Rafael Nadal has declared himself fit for the Australian Open, revealing that he is feeling no ill effects after having his appendix removed.
The Spaniard, who has suffered an injury-plagued year, was considered a doubt for next month's Grand Slam having been diagnosed with appendicitis in October.
However, Nadal is now fast on the road to recovery, upping his training regime in order to be fit and firing in time for the start of the showpiece tournament.
"Training hard this week with Richard Gasquet and his trainer, Sergi Bruguera," Nadal wrote on his Facebook page. "The operation on my appendix was good. No problems at all. I am able to practice for a lot of hours at a high intensity. After five months of pain, that's important to me.
"The main thing for me is I am able to work hard in these next weeks. I am sure the level of intensity and level of competition will be helpful for me. I will try to spend as much time on court as possible. Every match that I have the opportunity to play is important."
The Australian Open gets underway on January 19.
Daniel Lewis
