The news had been on the air for some time, but now there has been the official announcement. The Spanish champion Rafael Nadal, twenty-two times winner of Grand Slam titles, will not participate in the Indian Wells and Miami tournamentsthe next ATP 1000 on the calendar and that will be played on American hard courts.
Nadal was injured during the match valid for the second round of the Australian Open, a challenge that saw him lose against the American MacKenzie McDonald. During that match, Rafa suffered a muscular problem and according to the first indications he had to return directly after 6-8 weeks.
Everything confirmed and Rafa, except for sensational turns, should return to the ATP tournament in Monte Carlo and prepare the season on clay in the best possible way. Rafa posted a video on social media where he was determined to train and said: «Hello everyone.
I haven’t contacted you in a while. I took some time off, started rehab, gym and physical therapy as directed by doctors. We are preparing to return in the best conditions. I’m sad because I can’t compete in Indian Wells or Miami.
Very sad not to be there. I will miss all my fans in the US, but hope to see you later this year for summer swing!»
The bad news for Rafa did not end there
The Majorcan champion will miss the American ATP Masters 1000 and, therefore,after almost 18 years, he will soon officially leave the Top Ten.
Rafa’s longevity records are impressive and the Iberian tennis player is the only one who has remained in the Top Ten since April 2005. Extraordinary numbers but with the Spaniard who therefore soon leaves the world Top 10.
In fact, Rafa will lose the points in Indian Wells where he reached the final last year and consequently his exit is now mathematical.
At the Australian Open he was the protagonist of a journey that lasted two games, then nothing.
Rafael Nadal’s season did not start in the best way, with an injury that prevented him from continuing for the rest of the first part of the tennis year: he missed all subsequent hard-court matches due to a second-degree injury to his iliopsoas muscle. The left leg.
Six weeks away, lost in Dubai, where he would have found himself in the same table as Novak Djokovic after the first Grand Slam date, a return scheduled for Indian Wells and Miami, but plans have finally changed.
