World number one Rafael Nadal has pulled out of the Paris Masters 1000 Series tournament starting next week in the French capital.
This was announced by Jean François Caujolle, the director of the tournament during today’s draw.
Roger Federer was drawn on the same half as Andy Murray, and his first match will be against the winner of the first round match between Richard Gasquet and Nicolas Mahut.
The withdrawal was apparently “for medical reasons”, but we have not heard a statement yet from the player.
“Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from next week’s BNP Paribas Masters for medical reasons. The Spaniard will discuss his withdrawal when he appears on site in Paris for a media conference on Sunday or Monday.
Nadal, who was a finalist at the BNP Paribas Masters in 2007 and a semi-finalist last year, has played 18 consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments and in 33 of the past 35 Masters 1000s. The Spaniard last played three weeks ago, when he fell to Jurgen Melzer in the third round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters.
Nadal, who has already clinched the year-end No. 1 South African Airways 2010 ATP World Tour Ranking after a banner year in which he won three Grand Slam titles, is next scheduled to play at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals at London’s O2, from 21-28 November.”
Toni Nadal – Rafa’s coach, mentor, and uncle has said in a radio interview with Radio Marca in Spain that Nadal will play at Montreal, which starts on the 10th August
“Rafa will play in Montreal. It’s a good piece of news for us”.
Toni did however express some doubts as to what level of performance we can expect from the world number two:
“The level that he can offer is another matter. I suppose that he will not be in very good shape. He’s been training well, but not forcing himself too hard. To see his real level of form we’ll have to see him competing in a real match”, said Toni.
“There is no particular objective at this stage. Just to start getting back in form. Get to the US Open with assurances. We’ll see if he can get back in form in the next two tournaments and arrive well”
He also said that getting back to number one was now somewhat secondary for Nadal.
“What we are worried about is getting back into shape for playing and giving the best. Later we’ll see if Federer, Murray, Djokovic… beat us”.
This is great. I’m very pleased to see the Nadal camp facing up to the reality of Rafa’s injuries, and placing a focus on the US Open and his long term career, ahead of the short term aim of getting back to Number One. If he can stay well, keep playing, we all know that there is only one man that can really challenge Nadal on the court, and that is a rivalry that will blossom in 2010.
In a statement after today’s exhibition match which he lost to Stanislas Wawrinka (4-6 7-6 (8-6) 10-3 ), Nadal announced he will not be defending his title this year.
Rafa said, “Not to play Wimbledon is one of the toughest decisions in my career but the decision was made easier because I don’t feel ready to compete at 100 percent.”
“I don’t feel like I’m ready to play in a tournament that is as important as Wimbledon.
“I tried everything, I tried hard in the last week to get in the best condition and today was my last test. I didn’t feel terrible but I was not at my best.”
Nadal’s withdrawal leaves Roger Federer in pole position to battle for the title. If he successfully claims the championship, Roger will be Number One again on the ATP rankings – only an outright win will be sufficient to regain this honour.
Nadal has not indicated a likely return date, making it clear that his priority was to return to full health.
Best wishes Rafa, you are still young, and we look forward to seeing you back at full strength and with renewed, pain-free vigour!
Rafael Nadal has received an invitation from the organisers of the Hurlingham Club warm-up event, and responded positively to possibly taking this up.
After having withdrawn from Queens, Rafa is short on grass match time, and has said that he is hoping to play as it would be a ”good test for my knee.”
Let’s hope that this is a positive indication that Nadal’s knee tendonitis is responding favourably to treatment.
After exhaustive tests in Barcelona over the last 36 hours, Rafa announced that he would be travelling to London next Tuesday, June 16th in preparation for Wimbledon.
After the bad initial news of Rafa’s withdrawal from Queens last week, Nadal’s chances of retaining his position as Number One on the ATP rankings have been boosted by this announcement, as well as Roger’s decision to pull out of Halle. This “symmetric” outcome means both players will drop the 450 points they won last year by not defending their respective titles.
Here is the full text of the announcement, from Nadal’s website:
“I have been playing with pain on my knees for some months now and I simply can’t go on like this. The pain was limiting certain movements in my body, which affected me mentally as well.”
“After the tests and with the appropriate treatment, we have decided to travel to London next Tuesday, June 16th.”
“I am going to give my 200% to be ready for the most important tournament in the world. The tournament that I always dream about. I will not go out and play, especially on the Wimbledon Centre Court, if I am not 100% ready to play.”
“I have 2 difficult weeks ahead of me, especially because I won’t be doing what I like doing most, which is to play tennis, but I will be working on my recovery through physiotherapy treatments as well as recovery work on the specific muscular area.”
Doctor Angel Ruiz-Cotorro, the Spanish Federation doctor and Managing Director of the Mapfre Medical Tennis Center:
“After the appropriate tests (MRI, Ultrasound scans and gammagraphy) Mr. Rafael Nadal suffers from insertion tendonitis in the superior end of both kneecaps with a light osseous edema.
His treatment will involve oral anti-inflammatories, physiotherapy as well as progressive muscular exercises for both quadriceps’s.
Following the 48-hour treatment, Mr. Nadal will gradually get back into training.”
Sadly, Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from next week’s grass-court tournament at Queen’s.
Rafa said:
“I have been having some problems in the past months with my knees, that’s no secret, that did not allow me to compete always at 100 percent.
I need to work with my team to recover well, work on my physical condition to be at my top form and get ready for the grass to play at Wimbledon.
I hope I can be ready to compete by then.”
Nadal therefore misses out on appearing at Queens for the first time since 2005, and won’t be able to defend the title he won last year for the first time.
It will also make a full preparation for Wimbledon a little more difficult.
Wishing you all the best Rafa for a quick recovery!
Full quote from Rafa’s website:
I am very disappointed to not be able to come this year to Queen’s, defend the title I won last year and enjoy playing there in front of that very knowledgeable crowds. To play in London has always been special for me, to play at the Queen’s Club an honour and the fans in the UK are among the best I have ever seen, always supporting me since the first time I played there.
I have been having some problems in the past months with my knees, that’s no secret, that did not allow me to compete at 100% always.
I need to work with my team to recover well, work on my physical condition to be at my top form and get ready for the grass to play at Wimbledon. I hope I can be ready to compete by then.
I am really sorry and I hope that the people at the Club will still want me to come next year.
Rafael Nadal was chosen by the new Spanish captain, Alberto Costa, to lead Spain in the first round of this year’s Davis Cup in Benidorm. He will be joined by David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Tommy Robredo in a bid to retain the title won last year by Spain, in which Nadal missed the final through injury.
Nadal will be resting from this week’s Dubai Tennis Championships in order to recover from a strain to his right leg – and we at NadalversusFederer.com are looking forward to the mouthwatering prospect of seeing him play against the world number three Serb, Novak Djokovic.
Nadal is then planning to play Indian Wells, where it can be hoped that he will meet a rejuvenated Roger Federer!
Rafael Nadal has confirmed he will not play at the Dubai International Tennis Tournament, due to a need to rest the minor knee injury sustained during the recent ABN Amro Rotterdam tennis tournament.
Nadal wrote on his website, www.rafaelnadal.com:
“I am very disappointed not to be able to compete in Dubai but the doctor has advised me to stay home and rest after the pain on my knee in Rotterdam last week. Nothing to be worried about but it needs some rest. I ask my fans and the tournament organizers to understand and I am sorry for this. Dubai is one of my favorite tournaments and I have always played there. The field is always great and more important the crowds are always supportive. I expect to be back in competition the following week for the Davis Cup tie in Benidorm against Serbia and then traveling to Indian Wells and Miami after”.
Well, here’s wishing you a quick recovery, Rafa. The team here at NadalversusFederer.com are looking forward to seeing you in action in the David Cup matches, and licking our lips at the thought of a possible match up between you and Roger in Indian Wells, once you are both rested, fit and back in sensational form!
Sad news today for Federer and Nadalversusfederer.com fans… Roger has just pulled out of his forthcoming engagements with the Swiss Davis Cup team and the Dubai tennis tournament. Here is the announcement from his website:
Dear Fans,
Today I am disappointed to announce that I am withdrawing from both Dubai and the Davis Cup tie in the United States. This was a hard decision to make as I am missing not only one of my favorite events on tour in Dubai but I am also missing out on an opportunity to help my country try and move on to the next round of Davis Cup. After injuring my back last fall, I did not have enough time to strengthen it completely. As a precautionary measure, I will use the next few weeks to make sure the back injury is fully rehabilitated and I am ready for the rest of the 2009 season.
As always, thanks for your continued support.
Roger
What a pity, so early in the season, and just as the rivalry between Nadal and Federer on hard courts was looking even more exciting than ever after the epic Australian Open final. Roger, we at NadalVersusFederer.com send you our very best wishes for a quick recovery, and we look forward to see you on court again very soon.
A sigh of relief for fans of Nadal – it appears Rafa should be back at full strength very soon, and ready to play in his next appearances planned for the Dubai tournament and the Davis Cup tie against Serbia in Benidorm, provided that he is called up for the team.
Rafa Nadal gave an assurance that the knee, which prevented him from being 100% for the Rotterdam final, shouldn’t be a problem for the Davis Cup, which he is looking forward to immensely.
“I am not worried about my knee. It is not an injury like the one from last year, it was simply a matter of overload and fatigue. After the Australian Open I was not able to rest enough and I had to play two long and demanding matches before reaching the final”, explained Nadal.
“It is a tendon strain that, more than anything else, prevented me from serving well, but we are almost completely certain that there won’t be problems”, added the Spanish tennis player during a sponsorship event for the insurance company, Mapfre.
“I also hope to be able to reach Dubai, but we’ll see. The season has just started, but I have already played a lot of matches in a short space of time. It was a problem of muscle tiredness”, he said.
Nadal has now lost the last three matches against Andy Murry. “Murray is a great player who is fighting to get into the top three positions. It is true that he beat me when I was having some problems, but I am not sure that I would have beaten him even if I had been in perfect form. Murray is playing well”, admitted Rafa.
Melbourne Time
Rafael Nadal was chosen by the new Spanish captain, Alberto Costa, to lead Spain in the first round of this year’s Davis Cup in Benidorm. He will be joined by David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Tommy Robredo in a bid to retain the title won last year by Spain, in which Nadal missed the final through injury.
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