US Open blow after Nadal ends season

NEW YORK • Rafael Nadal yesterday confirmed he will end his season early due to a foot issue, ruling him out of this month's US Open and the season-ending ATP Finals.

The world No. 4 suffered a shock exit in Washington earlier this month, where he kicked off his lead-up to the final Grand Slam of the year, admitting he did not feel right.

The recurring injury, which goes back a decade, first flared up at June's French Open, where he lost in the semi-finals, and led to the Spaniard pulling out of Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics.

Following his aborted comeback in Washington after two months out, he pulled out of the Masters event in Toronto as well as the ongoing Cincinnati event.

"I wanted to inform you that unfortunately I have to end the 2021 season," Nadal tweeted yesterday.

"Honestly, I have been suffering much more than I should with my foot for a year and I need to take some time... to find a solution to this problem or at least improve it in order to continue to have options for the next few years.

"I'm with the maximum enthusiasm and predisposition to do whatever it takes to recover the best possible shape to keep competing for the things that really motivate me."

This is the second straight year Nadal will give the US Open a skip - he missed last year's hard-court Grand Slam because of Covid-19 concerns.

His withdrawal is another blow to the US Open men's draw, with defending champion Dominic Thiem of Austria this week also ending his season early, citing a wrist problem.

Last week, Roger Federer revealed he will not return to the circuit until next year and will be out for "many months" after another knee operation.

With two of tennis' "Big Three" missing at Flushing Meadows, top-ranked Novak Djokovic has been installed as the favourite to win his 21st Slam and break a three-way tie with his rivals at the Aug 30-Sept 12 event.

However, the Serb, who can become the first man to win all four Majors in a calendar year since 1969, has not played after failing to win a medal in Tokyo.

There have been no major pull-outs in the women's draw, but the form of the defending champion will be a concern.

An error-prone Naomi Osaka was stunned 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 by Swiss Jil Teichmann in Cincinnati on Thursday but the world No. 2 said she had tried her best and would not lose any sleep over the third-round defeat at the final US Open warm-up event.

Since withdrawing from the French Open after the first round as well as Wimbledon, citing mental health issues, Osaka has not had much match practice.

She made her comeback after two months in Tokyo, losing in the third round, and the reigning Australian and US Open champion admitted her lack of playing time was giving her problems.

The second-ranked Japanese, who earlier this week broke down in tears following her first press conference since May that led to her agent calling a reporter "a bully", said: "Of course I put myself in this position by choosing not to play that many tournaments... I feel like there were times where I was doubting myself."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS