Rafael Nadal’s showdown with Carlos Alcaraz gets lift-off with glitzy Netflix trailer

Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have been given the Hollywood treatment ahead of their exhibition match in Las Vegas on March 3.

The match is headlined by 22-time Grand Slam men’s singles title champion Rafael Nadal facing off against world No 2 Carlos Alcaraz, who is the reigning Wimbledon champion.

Nadal pulled out of next week’s Qatar Open as he vowed to be ready for his match against Alcaraz in Las Vegas and the Indian Wells ATP 1000 event that will follow.

“I would have loved to play in Doha, where the tournament team, as well as the amazing Qatar fans, have always supported me greatly,” said Nadal in a social media post.

“Unfortunately I am not ready to compete and I won’t be able to come to Doha where I really wanted to be and play again after that unforgettable win in 2014.

“I will focus on keep working to be ready for the exhibition in Las Vegas and the amazing Indian Wells tournament.”

The two players are being paid big money to take part in an event that looks set to be played in front of a sell-out crowd, even though ticket prices have been set at lavish levels.

Court-side seats are all but sold out at $3,000 each and a seat just to sit in the lower tier of the stand to watch the action will set you back $500.

READ MORE: Eye-watering ticket prices for Rafael Nadal vs Carlos Alcaraz Las Vegas showdown are revealed

That does not appear to have put off the fans who will flock to the arena to watch the match that will see Nadal return to the court for the first time in public since he withdrew from the Brisbane International event in early January.

Additional players and matchups will be announced at a later date, with tennis legends Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, Jim Courier, Mary Joe Fernández and Patrick McEnroe as well as tennis analyst Prakash Amritraj and host Kay Adams all part of the Netflix team covering the event.

This is an interesting dip into live tennis broadcasting for Netflix, amid rumours that they showed an interest in the contract to broadcast ATP and WTA Tour events in the UK and Ireland when the bidding process was underway last year.

Sky Sports eventually signed a deal to screen tennis on their network, but Netflix chiefs will be monitoring viewing figures on this high-profile Nadal vs Alcaraz clash as they weigh up entering the live sports market.

The Netflix series Break Point has proved to be a popular addition to their increasingly plentiful sports offering, with the series taking viewers behind the scenes on the ATP and WTA Tour.

It was an innovative insight into players who may not have been known to an audience outside of the tennis community and former British No 1 Laura Robson suggests the sport should be open to any new idea as it looks to reach out to a wider audience.

“I’m all for new plans, new developments,” said Robson, speaking to Tennis365 at the launch of the new Sky Sports Tennis channel.

“I just came back from the Australian Open and I loved the fact that people were coming in a 1-0 and not having to wait outside until three games were played.

“It made it so much better for spectators and once the players got used to it, there were zero issues.

“I’m all for quicker balls, quicker courts, whatever makes tennis more entertaining to the biggest audience possible.

“Matches that go on for four and a half hours seem unnecessarily long, so I would welcome any changes that improve the sport.

“Tennis has been the same for a very long time and people don’t like disruption, but we should try new things.”