Injured Thiem out of US Open; Halep raring to go
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Romania's Simona Halep returning a shot en route to beating Magda Linette of Poland 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 at the Cincinnati Masters on Tuesday.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LOS ANGELES • Dominic Thiem will not defend his US Open title after pulling out of the hard-court Grand Slam with a wrist injury, the world No. 6 said yesterday.
The Austrian's withdrawal did not come as a surprise as the injury he picked up in June at the Mallorca Open led to him skipping Wimbledon as well as the Tokyo Olympics.
Thiem added on Twitter he will miss the rest of the year, including the season-ending ATP Finals, to rehabilitate.
The 27-year-old, the only man born in the 90s to have won a Major, revealed that he would have to wear a wrist splint for at least a month and in a tweet to his fans, said: "It has been a tough decision but I know this is what I have to do. I have a long career ahead of me and it's important not to take risks and rush back.
"I will use this time where I'm not competing to stay in shape and put more focus on causes I'm very committed to, such as sustainability, especially ocean conservation and nature."
With Roger Federer also missing at Flushing Meadows - his season ended last week after another knee surgery that will rule him out until next year - there is uncertainty over the fitness of the other men's players set to compete in New York from Aug 30 to Sept 12.
Rafael Nadal has been troubled by a foot injury, which forced him out of Wimbledon and Tokyo, and led to his withdrawal from this week's Cincinnati Masters.
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic also withdrew from Cincinnati and Toronto, citing fatigue, meaning he will play no warm-up tournaments ahead of the US Open.
On the women's side, Simona Halep is also building up her fitness, earning her first victory since a calf tear in May forced her to withdraw from the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympics.
The Romanian, who made her comeback after three months at last week's WTA Montreal event, defeated Magda Linette of Poland 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 at the Cincinnati Open on Tuesday.
A three-time finalist here, Halep is confident that progress is not far away after her injury in Rome.
She said: "I'm happy to be back, happy to play pain-free. I'm just trying to build my confidence back.".
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS
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