Montreal (Canada) Montreal (Canada) 5 : World No 3 Rafael Nadal on Friday withdrew from next week’s National Bank Open, set to take place in Montreal due to an abdominal problem that has been recurring for a while. The Spaniard injured his knee during his quarter-final encounter with Taylor Fritz at Wimbledon on July 6.Despite fighting through the pain to win a impressive five-set win over the American, Nadal was later forced to pull out of his semi-final against Nick Kyrgios.
Nadal needs longer to recover from the injury, resulting in his decision to withdraw from the hardcourt ATP Masters 1000 event in Canada.
“I have been practicing for a while without serving and began with serves just four days ago.All has been going smoothly.But yesterday after my usual workout I noticed a slight discomfort in my abdominal area and it was there today.there.” claimed Nadal in an Tennis Canada statement.
“After talking with my physician, we’d like to approach things in an orderly manner and allow a few days before attempting to compete.I’d like to express my gratitude to Eugene and the Tournament Director and the rest of his team for being patient and supporting me through this decision.I am extremely disappointed not to finally make it to Montreal.It’s a tournament in which I have won five times and I am a huge fan of getting playing there.I truly hope I’ll be able to return to play in the presence of the incredible crowds there.” he added.
Nadal, 36 times Masters 1000 champion Nadal is five times a winner in Canada, with three of the titles being in Montreal as well as two in Toronto.
Despite being out for the entirety of April with a fractured rib and the current abdominal problem, the 36-year-old Spaniard has had a fantastic 2022 season.Nadal holds a record for matches of 35-3 and won his record-breaking 21st and 22nd Grand Slam titles at the Australian Open and Roland Garros.
“We are absolutely dismayed to learn that Rafael isn’t with us this year.Five times champion of our tournament, and the final men’s champion in Montreal in the year 2019.
fans were clearly eager to see Rafael return in competition at the IGA Stadium,” said Eugene Lapierre, director of the Montreal Tournament.
“On contrary, if we look at the bigger picture we have a solid board with the presence of 41 of the top 44 tennis players in the world.With such a great field, it’s an assured bet that the IGA Stadium will once again show off some very thrilling tennis.” he added.
World No.1 Daniil Medvedev is the current champion of the Canadian Masters 1000 event, which alternates between the cities of the host cities of Montreal and Toronto every year.The 2018 edition of the third-oldest tournament on the ATP Tour will run from August 7-14.
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