According to ESPN on Sunday, tennis star Rafael Nadal of Manacor, Spain has withdrawn from the 2024 Australian Open because of a hip injury. The 22-time grand slam champion tore a muscle in his hip, and needed a medical timeout in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Brisbane International.
Nadal’s first match since his injury at the 2023 Australian Open against American Mackenzie MacDonald was a 7-5, 6-1 win over Dominic Thiem of Austria on January 2. Nadal then beat Australia’s Jason Kubel 6-1, 6-2. In the match Nadal suffered an injury, he lost 7-5, 6-7, 6-3 to Australia’s Jordan Thompson.
There has been speculation that this might be Nadal’s final tennis season. He has dominated the French Open over the years, and this year will be scheduled to compete at Roland Garros twice as Paris is hosting the 2024 Olympic Games.
Nadal has had great success at the Australian Open over the years too. He was victorious in 2009 and 2022. When Nadal won the Australian Open final over Daniil Medvedev of Russia, he won by a score of 2-6, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5. It was the longest match ever played at the 2022 Australian Open.
Nadal is one of nine notable players who have withdrawn from the tournament. He joins Nick Kyrgios of Australia (foot, knee and wrist), Bianca Andreescu of Canada (back), Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic (wrist), Madison Keys of the United States (shoulder), Belinda Bencic of Switzerland (pregnancy), Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic (pregnancy), Venus Williams of the United States (undisclosed) and Lauren Davis of the United States (shoulder). Due to the large number of withdrawals in the women’s singles draw, 2021 United States Open champion Emma Raducanu is entering the main draw.
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