Rafael Nadal will miss the US Open and the rest of the 2021 season due to a foot injury.
“I am very sorry to announce that I will not be able to keep playing tennis during the 2021 season,” Nadal announced on social media on Friday.
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“But as you know I have been suffering too much with my foot for the past year.
“I have missed a lot of important events for me like the US Open now, like Wimbledon, like the Olympics and many other events that are so important and emotional for me.”
Hear the latest from Rafa as he ends his 2021 season 👇
(via @RafaelNadal) pic.twitter.com/tKLn6RQ89y
— ATP Tour (@atptour) August 20, 2021
The Spaniard had lost to Novak Djokovic in the semifinal of French Open. He made a brief return to tour at the Citi Open in Washington.
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The 20-time major champion made the Round of 16 there before travelling to Toronto for the Canadian Masters. But Nadal withdrew from the ATP Masters 1000 event.
“The injury is nothing new. It is the same injury that I have had since 2005,” the 35-year-old added.
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“In that moment, the doctors were very negative about my future career, but I was able to have a career that I never dreamed about.
“So I am confident that I will recover again the foot and if the foot is better, I am confident that my tennis and my mentality will be there again soon.”
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Nadal finishes his season with a 24-5 record and two titles, in Barcelona and Rome. He last won a major at the delayed 2020 French Open.
Nadal is the latest to pull out of the last major of the season. Roger Federer and Dominic Thiem will also not be competing in New York, where Novak Djokovic will bid for the record-breaking 21st major and a calendar Grand Slam.
