Andy's bid to rediscover his best was impaired by an ongoing knee injury and a fractured sacrum, while Frank tested positive for the banned diuretic Xipamide during the 2012 Tour. He denied using the drug intentionally and the Luxembourg Anti-Doping Agency handed him a reduced one-year ban, backdated to July 14, 2012. However, he did not race last year after the ban expired as his former team cut their ties with him. Schleck's first races back are the People's Choice Classic criterium in Adelaide on Sunday night and the Tour Down Under, which starts on Tuesday. Frank Schleck said on Sunday that he said he still rates Evans as a contender for the Giro. Schleck also voiced support for his former teammate, the retired Stuart O'Grady, who admitted using the banned blood booster erythropoietin (EPO) before the 1998 Tour and who is in Adelaide.

But when asked about Evans, Schleck said: "Cadel is a hell of a rider. He has such a strong mentality, such a strong mind. You never know with him. "The years are passing also for him, but that doesn't matter any more . . . "When you're strong enough in your mind, your ego is strong enough. "If you are strong enough once . . . he showed it once, why not again? "He's a great champion. I will absolutely put him on that podium list."

Schleck's estimation of Evans' chances in the Tour Down Under and the Giro, from May 9 to June 1, where he will come up against the likes of Australian Richie Porte (Sky), Spaniard Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha), Colombian Nairo Quintana (Movistar) and Irishman Dan Martin (Garmin-Sharpe), strengthened after hearing how he raced at the Australian road titles in Buninyong, Victoria, one week earlier. Evans won the silver medal behind Simon Gerrans (Orica-GreenEDGE), while Porte won the bronze medal. "I didn't get the chance to see it, but I have my voices and spies everywhere," Schleck joked. "The most impressive, I heard, was Cadel. Both [Evans and Gerrans] are ready [for the Tour Down Under]. They are going to be strong. "They are in their home country. They have the support of the whole nation. They are going to be really motivated.

"They know all the climbs and the roads as their backyard. They will be the main contenders." Asked about O'Grady, a close friend who when not in Australia lives in Luxembourg, Schleck lauded him for sticking by him during his ban. "He is a friend. He stood behind me. Stuart is a great guy always, and a very good friend of mine," Schleck said. "[O'Grady] said what he had to say [on his own case after last year's Tour and before being named in a French senate doping inquiry]. "It's fair enough that he retired. I keep him as a great champion and great guy."

Schleck hopes to see O'Grady this week. When he does, he will "give him a big hug – probably have a coffee, probably beer, after the race". Meanwhile, Schleck said he will not hold anything back in the Tour Down Under in which his race number is 41. "I'm going to put the No. 41 on my back, which I am going to keep," he said. "As soon as I put my number on my race jersey I am here to race." As Schleck spoke, he could not hold back his enthusiasm for his return. "I was looking forward to it – training and staying fit – focusing," he said.

"But today I picked up my race number ... Now the day is there, it's quite exciting. I am excited, nervous, happy, scared at the same time ..." However, Schleck would not specify any goal for the Tour Down Under, or beyond. "I want to ride myself back into confidence," he said. "Maybe I am going to finish 25th or 31st or 50th. Maybe I will win. "What's important is, when I take the flight home, I have a smile on my face, [and] have got the feeling back."