Former world number one Rafael Nadal said the injury was a "micro tear on a muscle". He added that he will fly back to Spain to see his doctor and get some treatment and rest
It is official. Rafael Nadal will miss the upcoming Australian Open 2024 in Melbourne due to an injury revealed in an MRI. The Spanish tennis titan shared the update on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), adding that he will fly back to Spain to see his doctor and get some treatment and rest. (More Tennis News)
Nadal said the injury was a "micro tear on a muscle". He wrote on X: "Hi all, during my last match in Brisbane I had a small problem on a muscle that as you know made me worried. Once I got to Melbourne I have had the chance to make an MRI and I have micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where I had the injury and that’s good news."
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Nadal added: "Right now I am not ready to compete at the maximum level of exigence in 5 sets matches. I’m flying back to Spain to see my doctor, get some treatment and rest."
“I have worked very hard during the year for this comeback and as I always mentioned my goal is to be at my best level in 3 months,” he said in a following tweet.
“Within the sad news for me for not being able to play in front of the amazing Melbourne crowds, this is not very bad news and we all remain positive with the evolution for the season.
“I really wanted to play here in Australia and I have had the chance to play a few matches that made me very happy and positive,” Nadal added.
The southpaw had made a strong return to elite tennis after an year-long layoff, getting to the quarter-finals in the Brisbane International tennis tournament. He eventually lost in three sets to Jordan Thompson of Australia. More concerning than his early exit was the fact that the Spaniard seemed to be carrying some sort of niggle in the second and third sets.
"I feel the muscle tired. It is not the same like last year at all because when it happened last year, I felt something drastic immediately. Here I didn't feel anything," Nadal had said after the match.