“I cannot deceive thousands of fans and myself at the same time.”
Rafael Nadal declared on social media on Wednesday night that he was withdrawing from the BNP Paribas Open. The 22-time Grand Slam winner was scheduled to participate in what would have been his first official match since January until the news was announced.
Because he required surgery to address a hip ailment, Rafael Nadal, 37, missed the most of the previous season. In his written statement, he expressed “great sadness” at missing the Indian Wells event in Southern California:
The legendary Spanish tennis player remarked, “Everyone knows how much I love this place and how much I love to play here.” “However, I don’t think I’m prepared to perform at my best at such a significant occasion. I can’t lie to thousands of followers and to myself—it’s not a simple decision, in fact, it’s a tough one.”
Only twelve official matches have been played by Rafael Nadal in the years following the 2022 US Open. In his final major tournament, on January 24, German player Alex Zverev defeated Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open.
His most recent outing was on Sunday at the Netflix Slam in Las Vegas, when he was defeated by fellow countryman Carlos Alcaraz. When he entered the exhibition, he had defeated the 20-year-old in two of his previous three fights. Nadal said in his statement that he had been “working hard and practicing,” alluding to his training in the California desert prior to his defeat by Alcaraz in Indian Wells.
With three championship victories at the BNP Paribas Open, Rafael Nadal has a 59-11 record in the hard-court competition.
In a statement, tournament director Tommy Haas expressed regret for Nadal’s absence and revealed that Indian player Sumit Nagal will take his place.
