Andy Murray has arrived in Mallorca ahead of an unexpected return to action, as he prepares to line-up against his old rival Rafael Nadal.

The great’s from what was golden age of men’s tennis have not been seen on a tennis court since they hung up their rackets, with Nadal, Murray and Roger Federer taking a back seat from the sport since they played their last match.

Federer made a high profile appearance at the US Open as he played an exhibition doubles match with John McEnroe as his partner, as they took on the all-American duo of Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi.

Now Murray and Nadal are getting a chance to return to action, as they play in an event that will celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Rafael Nadal Academy.

So what can we expect from an event that is certain to throw up plenty of viral social media moments over the next couple of days.

More Tennis News

THE FORMAT

Former world No 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray will captain the team that will take on Rafa Nadal’s side on 3 October at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor as part of the Academy’s 10th Anniversary celebrations.

Nadal himself revealed the first player confirmed for the Rafa Nadal Academy Slam in a video posted on the Academy’s social media channels.

In the video, Rafa personally invited Murray to return to the Academy in Mallorca as he said: “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,” said Nadal:

“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 10th Anniversary.”

The Rafa Nadal Academy Slam gets underway at 4pm on Saturday with the on-court exhibitions, challenges and a number of surprises featuring special guests. Then the main event starts at 5pm,

LEGENDS LINE UP TO PLAY

Team Rafa will feature Spanish greats David Ferrer and Carlos Moya, with Richard Gasquet also in a strong line-up.

They are set to face Team Murray—featuring Dominic Thiem, Marat Safin and Fabio Fognini—in a doubles exhibition.

The addition of Ferrer and Moyaà reunites three icons of a generation that defined an era in Spanish tennis.

Ferrer and Nadal shared countless moments on and off the court for nearly two decades. The Alicante native was a cornerstone of the Spanish team that captured the 2008, 2009 and 2011 Davis Cups, and he currently serves as the Spanish team captain.

It was Ferrer who led the team during Nadal’s final professional appearance at the 2024 Finals in Malaga.

Murray has often spoken about his lack of interest in playing tennis since he retired at the 2024 Olympics, with his passion for golf kicking in since he hung up his rackets.

But he couldn’t resit the offer to return to the court when he got the call from Nadal.

READ NEXT: Andy Murray shares big concern about modern tennis after spotting a new trend with current stars