Mattek-Sands confirms return date after horror knee injury

Bethanie Mattek-Sands has announced her return to competitive action following the horrific knee injury she suffered at Wimbledon last year.

The American confirmed on social media that she would team up with doubles partner Lucie Safarova to compete at the Indian Wells Masters next month.

It would mark the end of a long road to recovery for the 32-year-old, who required surgery after dislocating her patella and rupturing her patella tendon in a second-round match against Sorana Cirstea at the grass-court grand slam.

"We're getting the band back together!" she said.

"I'm excited for my first tournament back. It's weird to think I haven't played in seven months.

"As much as I like to train and practice, I like matches. That's why we're out here.

"But Lucie's ready to go, and we're planning to play Miami and Charleston after that. Some of my favourite tournaments are in this swing, and it was a goal to be ready for these events."