Andy Murray is set to make a surprise return to the tennis court on Saturday alongside fellow retired great Rafael Nadal, with their special event being shown live around the world.
Murray brought his playing career to an end at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where he competed in the men's doubles alongside Dan Evans. Nadal continued playing for a few months longer, officially calling time on his career after representing Spain at the 2024 Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.
Coaching since retirement
Murray has since moved into coaching, working with former rival Novak Djokovic from November 2024 until May 2025 before turning his attention to Jack Draper earlier this year. Nadal, meanwhile, has remained closely involved with tennis through his academy in Manacor, Mallorca.
It is there that Murray's latest return will take place, with the Rafael Nadal Academy celebrating its 10th anniversary on Saturday, October 3. Murray arrived on Friday ahead of the match and was greeted by TV cameras and fans eagerly anticipating watching him play again.
Nadal's invitation
Nadal invited Murray to take part in a special team competition at the academy, initially challenging the Scot to a "golf match" before outlining plans for a wider event.
"I know you've been practising a lot, almost like a professional. I can't practise as much as you, but I think I can still be competitive," Nadal said. "Maybe you can bring some of your friends and I can bring some of mine, and we can have a team competition here at the academy to celebrate the anniversary."
Murray has ditched one of the biggest golfing events of the year in order to attend, pulling out of the 2026 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship team event, where he starred in 2025. Since retirement, Murray has focussed heavily on his golf game, getting his handicap down to just 1.
Team line-ups and broadcast
Nadal and Murray will captain Team Rafa and Team Murray respectively back on the tennis court, with both men included in four-strong teams. Murray will be joined by Marat Safin, Dominic Thiem and Fabio Fognini, while Nadal's team features Richard Gasquet, Carlos Moya and David Ferrer.
That means there is set to be the first meeting between Murray and Nadal since the 2016 Madrid Masters, when the Scot claimed a 7-5 6-4 victory. Murray has previously visited the academy, undertaking a training session there in 2016 before returning for the Rafa Nadal Open three years later.
The Rafa Nadal Academy Slam gets under way at 3pm BST on Saturday, with the event being streamed live by the Tennis Channel in the UK and around the world. The Tennis Channel is available to watch in the UK through Amazon Prime Video, Samsung TV Plus, LG Channels / LG TV Plus, Pluto, Rakuten, Free Live Sports / Netgem, and TCL Hisense Vidaa.
