Rafael Nadal’s comeback bid at the Mexican Open has ended in agony after he developed an injury in the same area that sidelined him from the Australian Open last month.
The world No.2 was set to get his campaign underway against Feliciano Lopez on Wednesday, but has officially pulled out of the tournament. Nadal was set to play in his first match since January. In recent weeks he has been sidelined by an upper right leg injury.
It is understood that the 10-time grand slam champion picked up a fresh injury during training on Monday. With the problem being in the same area of his body that forced him to retire against Marin Cilic in Melbourne.
“I had done all the right steps to get well prepared for the tournament, which was my goal and my hope,” Nadal told reporters in Acapulco.
“Unfortunately, yesterday in the last training session before I made my debut, I noticed a prick (sharp pain) in the same area where I had the problem in Australia.”
According to El Espanol, the world No.2 is now a doubt for the two upcoming Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami. He is set to undergo further tests before making an announcement next week about what he will do. He had been training in the Mexican city since February 19th with the goal of returning to competitive tennis. Earlier this week, he said that his focus for 2018 was on staying healthy and not the No.1 ranking.
As a result of his setback, Nadal will not be able to defend his 300 points this week. Widening the gap between him and No.1 Roger Federer.
Nadal has only managed to play one tournament so far this season. He didn’t play any events leading up to the Australian Open in order to give himself more time to prepare. At the end of last year, the 31-year-old also pulled out of the ATP Finals due to a knee injury.
Replacing Nadal in the draw as the highest ranked player will be Alexander Zverev. He is the second top 10 player to withdraw from the event after Cilic.
