Rafael Nadal withdraws from Australian Open 2024 due to muscle injury

Nadal was seen in bit of discomfort during his match at the Brisbane International quarterfinals.

Rafael Nadal, the 22-time Grand Slam champion, has announced his withdrawal from the Australian Open 2024, citing a muscle injury that he sustained during his comeback tournament in Brisbane.

The 37-year-old Spaniard, who had been out of action for a year due to a hip flexor injury that required surgery, returned to the court this month at the Brisbane International, where he won two matches against Dominic Thiem and Jason Kubler, before losing to Jordan Thompson in a three-set thriller.

Nadal revealed that he had a small problem on a muscle during his last match in Brisbane, which made him worried. He underwent an MRI scan in Melbourne, where he discovered that he had a micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where he had the previous injury.

In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Nadal said: “Hi all, during my last match in Brisbane I had a small problem with a muscle that as you know made me worried. Once I got to Melbourne I had the chance to have an MRI and I had a micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where I had the injury and that’s good news.

Right now I am not ready to compete at the maximum level of exigence in five-set 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 three months.

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 wanted to play here in Australia and I have had the chance to play a few matches that made me very happy and positive.

Thanks all for the support and see you soon! Rafa.”

The Australian Open, starting on January 14, will miss Rafael Nadal. Nadal is a two-time champion (2009 and 2022) and a 14-time finalist of the event and also holds the record for the longest final ever played in the tournament when he and Novak Djokovic battled for 5 hours and 53 minutes in 2012.

Nadal is currently ranked 451 in the world, Rankings currently dominated by Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz, who are expected to be the main contenders for the Australian Open title. Nadal’s absence also opens up the opportunity for other players, such as Alexander Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Daniil Medvedev, and Jannik Sinner who can challenge for the first Grand Slam of the year.

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