Rafa Nadal Withdraws from Montreal

Rafael Nadal has pulled the plug on Montreal after feeling pain in his abdominal during practice.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion announced his withdrawal from next week’s National Bank Open today.

Nadal sustained an abdominal tear last month that forced him to pull out of Wimbledon ahead of his scheduled semifinal vs. Nick Kyrgios.

“I have been practicing for a while now without serving and started with serves four days ago,” said Nadal in a statement. “Everything has been going well. However yesterday, after my normal practice, I felt a slight bother on my abdominal and today it was still there.

“After speaking with my doctor, we prefer to take things in a conservative way and give a few more days before starting to compete. I would like to thank Eugene, the Tournament Director, and all his team for understanding and supporting me and this decision.

“I am very sad not to finally travel to Montréal. It’s a tournament that I have won 5 times and I love to play there. I seriously hope I can come back there to play in front of the amazing crowds up there.”

Desde los días de vacaciones y mi posterior reincorporación a los entrenamientos todo ha ido bien estas semanas. Hace cuatro días que empecé también a entrenar el servicio y ayer, tras el entrenamiento, tuve una pequeña molestia que hoy seguía ahí.— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) August 5, 2022

Hemos decidido no viajar a Montréal y proseguir con los entrenamientos sin forzar. Agradezco de corazón al director del torneo, Eugène y todo su equipo por la compresión y apoyo que siempre me han mostrado y hoy no ha sido una excepción.— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) August 5, 2022

Espero volver a jugar en Montréal, un torneo que me encanta y que he ganado en cinco ocasiones ante un público que siempre me acogió con mucho cariño. No me queda otra que ser prudente a estas alturas y pensar en la salud.— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) August 5, 2022

World No. 3 Nadal joins seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic in withdrawing from Montreal.

Djokovic officially pulled out of the Canadian Masters event yesterday due to Canada’s ongoing official policy of not allowing international travelers who are not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 entry into the country. The 35-year-old Serbian is unvaccinated and is participation in the US Open remains in doubt.