A few hours before the draw for the National Bank Open, the Spaniard Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal due to an abdominal injury.
Nadal, the third-ranked player in the world, said he started feeling mild abdominal discomfort after training on Thursday and the pain was still there when he woke up Friday morning. In these circumstances and after consulting his doctor, he preferred to take a few more days of rest before resuming competition.
“I am very sad not to be able to come to Montreal,” Nadal said in a statement. It’s a tournament I’ve won five times and I love playing it. I sincerely hope I can return to the tournament to play in front of the crowd which is always amazing. »
Following Nadal’s withdrawal, American Mackenzie McDonald, 48e world player, will therefore avoid qualifying and go directly to the main draw.
“We are certainly very disappointed that Rafael is not able to join us. […] He was obviously eagerly awaited by fans and we were all looking forward to seeing him in action, mentioned Eugène Lapierre, director of the Montreal tournament.
“On the other hand, once this disappointment is over, we have to look at the tournament as a whole, which remains extremely tough, with in particular the presence of 41 of the top 44 players in the world. »
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