(Madrid) Rafael Nadal, injured in a hip muscle since the Australian Open in January, will also not participate in the Rome tournament next week, the last of three Masters 1000 on clay before Roland-Garros (28 May-June 11), he announced on social media on Friday.
“I am sorry to announce that I will not be able to be in Rome”, writes Nadal (36), already forfeited in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid since the start of the season on ocher. “Despite an improvement noted in recent days, I have not been able to train at a high level for many months, the recovery process takes time and I have no other choice but to accept it and continue to work”, continues the Spaniard with a record fourteen trophies at Roland-Garros.
The ex-N. 1 global today 14e hasn’t appeared in competition since losing in the second round of the Australian Open in mid-January to American Mackenzie McDonald in three sets. He had felt a sharp pain in a hip in the second set, but went to the end of the match when he was visibly struggling to move.
His absence was then estimated at six to eight weeks, but his injury to the iliopsoas muscle in his left leg proved to be more persistent than expected.
At the twilight of his exceptional career, “Rafa” nevertheless hopes to celebrate once again, on June 3, his birthday at Roland-Garros, where he would aim for a 15e title to bring the record for Grand Slam titles to 23, which he currently co-holds with Novak Djokovic.
Since the 2022 edition of Roland-Garros, where he had triumphed despite an anesthetized left foot to contain the pain caused by the chronic illness from which he has suffered since the age of 18 (Müller-Weiss syndrome), Nadal has continued to accumulate physical glitches. An abdominal tear had notably forced him to give up playing his semi-final at Wimbledon a month later.
His long absence from the courts took him out of the top 10 of the ATP rankings on March 20, for the first time since April 2005.
