( CNN ) Rafael Nadal says he 's unsure if he will play at this month 's Australian Open after slumping to defeat in the opening round of the Qatar Open in Doha . The world No . 3 was dumped out of the season opener by 34-year-old German qualifier Michael Berrer 1-6 , 6-3 , 6-4 in a match lasting a little under two hours . Nadal , who defeated Gael Monfils in the final 12 months ago , admitted to being nervous in his first tour match since undergoing appendix surgery last November . `` I was playing with more nerves than usual . I knew that winning a couple of matches here will help me , so that makes me play a little bit more under more tension , '' Nadal said , the ATP Tour website reported . His second defeat inside a week -- Nadal lost in straight sets to Andy Murray at an exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi on January 3 -- has cast doubt in his own mind if he is ready for the season 's opening grand slam in Melbourne which gets underway on January 19 . `` This is the third comeback of my career after injury , so we will see how it goes in a couple of months . I wanted to start well , but it was not the case today , '' Nadal said , Agence France-Presse reported . `` I also want to play in the Australian Open which is a tournament I like a lot . I do n't know if that will be the case either , but I am going to work for it . If not I will be playing at Rio and Buenos Aires ( ATP Tour clay court tournaments taking place in February ) . `` The season is long . After coming back from injury you ca n't see the immediate moment , you have to look further ahead a little bit . '' After suffering a back injury in last year 's Australian Open final defeat to Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka , and missing the U.S. Open in September with a wrist injury , Nadal could be forgiven for being cautious about his return . Tsonga out of Melbourne . While Nadal 's participation remains in doubt , Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will definitely not be in the draw for Melbourne . The 29-year-old Frenchman , who reached the final in 2008 , has yet to recover from an arm injury sustained during France 's defeat to Switzerland in the Davis Cup final last November . `` It is with great disappointment that I have to postpone today the start of my season , pulling out of the Australian Open , '' Tsonga said Wednesday . `` I 'm still suffering from a forearm inflammation ( intersection syndrome ) and that prevents me from being at full capacity . '' There seem to be no such health worries for world No . 1 Novak Djokovic who was forced to withdraw from last weekend 's final against Murray in Abu Dhabi with a fever . The Serb cruised through his opening match in Doha , seeing off his compatriot Dusan Lajovic 6-2 6-1 in 59 minutes . Djokovic will play Ukraine 's Sergiy Stakhovsky in round two .
Spaniard loses on return to action at Qatar Open in Doha . World No . 1 defeated in three sets by German qualifier Michael Berrer . The former major champion had appendix surgery last November . Jo - Marie Tsonga pulled out of Australian Open due to ongoing arm injury .