Rafael Nadal has made a swift appointment after long-time ally Francis Roig left his coaching team.
The record 22-time men’s grand slam singles champion has brought in Argentinian Gustavo Marcaccio to work with lead coach Carlos Moya and Marc Lopez.
Nadal announced on Friday that Roig was departing, having worked with the Spaniard since 2005, to take on “a new project”.
With the new ATP season just days away from beginning, Marcaccio has accepted the chance to step in, with the 45-year-old having held a position at Nadal’s academy in Mallorca for the past 20 months.
Marcaccio had a mostly undistinguished playing career, reaching a high of 284th on the rankings, but he has strong coaching credentials, having worked with the likes of Juan Monaco, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Guido Pella.
Nadal wrote on Twitter: “Hello everyone. I want to inform you of the incorporation of Gustavo Marcaccio to the technical team.
“Gustavo has been working at the @rafanadalacademy since April 2021 and I understand that he is a good addition to the team. I am sure he will help us a lot to follow the path. Welcome!”
Nadal will return to Melbourne as the defending champion at the Australian Open in January, having won that and the French Open in 2022 to move ahead of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic on the men’s all-time grand slam list.
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