World No.1 Rafael Nadal will face Richard Gasquet on Tuesday at the Kooyong Classic in a key fitness test ahead of the Australian Open.
The 16-time grand-slam champion hasn't played since mid-November when he injured his knee during the World Tour Finals in London.
His clash with French world No.31 Gasquet at the Kooyong exhibition event is likely to help decide whether he can commit to a 13th campaign at Melbourne Park.
With Andy Murray having already ruled himself out, Nadal is one of several big names still under an injury cloud ahead of the Australian Open starting on Monday.
Novak Djokovic will play two matches at Kooyong in his return from an elbow complaint, while Stan Wawrinka has missed the past six months with a knee injury.
All three are set to play at the Tie Break Tens fast-format exhibition tournament on Wednesday night in Melbourne.
Nadal, who lost to Roger Federer in five sets in last year's final, arrived in Melbourne on Wednesday, determined to add to his sole Australian Open triumph in 2009.
Concerns over his fitness led Nadal to pull out of lead-up events in Brisbane and Sydney, having earlier cancelled a planned training block in Majorca with Portuguese player Joao Sousa.
Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash said the 31-year-old would likely be feeling nervous ahead of the year's opening grand slam.
"When you have a setback only a couple of weeks from the Australian Open, it's a bit of a worry, particularly when you know you're going to be playing best of five-set matches in heat," Cash said on Monday.
"It could be really extreme heat.
"You have to be able to be ready to play five sets, and it's always a bit of a panic. I think the players would be quite anxious about it."
