London - Rafael Nadal's knee and abdominal strain problems have not prevented officials from naming the world No 3 to the Spanish Davis Cup team which will face Israel in a semi-final tie next weekend. Captain Albert Costa has chosen Nadal to lead a squad comprised of Tommy Robredo, David Ferrer and Feliciano Lopez in doubles against the Midle East tennis minnow nation.
Nadal's fitness has been spotty at best, with the four-time French Open champion forced to miss his title defence at Wimbledon as he sat out two months to rest a pair of injured knees.
He has also been suffering with his abdominal strain in recent weeks and needed rare treatment on court during his third-round US Open win over Nicolas Almagro.
The tie in Murcia against Israel is set for September 18-20. The Spaniards own a 3-0 record in that series, with the winner to face either Croatia or the Czech Republic.
Spain are dominant, winning 16 of their last home ties and bidding for a seventh Davis Cup final. It is a first for Israel, who have upset Sweden and Russian this season in the worldwide team competition.
