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Rafael Nadal Withdraws From Rotterdam

“I suffered some back problems in Australia that started in Adelaide and
continued during Melbourne,” Rafael Nadal said in withdrawing from Rotterdam. EPA-EFE/DAVE HUNT

The back injury Rafael Nadal sustained in Australia has forced him out of Rotterdam.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion officially withdrew from the 48th ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament.

“It is with great sadness that I have to forfeit from Rotterdam. As most of
the fans know, I suffered some back problems in Australia that started in Adelaide and continued during Melbourne,” Nadal said in a statement. “We found a temporary solution that allowed me to play without pain in the second week of the tournament. Once I got back to Spain I visited my
doctor and together with my team they’ve advised not to play this upcoming week.

“I was really looking forward to coming back to Rotterdam and The Netherlands since it’s been a while I played there and this was the perfect year for my calendar. I hope to come back and play there soon. All the best to the tournament, always a top class event.”

World No. 3 Daniil Medvedev, fresh off his run to the Australian Open final on Sunday, replaces Nadal as the top seed in Rotterdam, which begins on March 1st. Even in Nadal’s absence, the tournament boasts a loaded field.

“As it would have been Nadal’s first appearance in Rotterdam since 2009, we were really looking forward to greeting him in Rotterdam for the first time,” tournament director Richard Krajicek said. “We will definitely miss him next week. Fortunately we still have a great list of players left, with players like Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev.”