‘Will miss playing at the Championships this year’: Rafael Nadal withdraws from Wimbledon to prepare for Olympics

NEW DELHI: The 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal on Thursday withdrew from the upcoming Wimbledon in July to be fit for the Paris 2024 Olympics, which follow the grass-court event.

Nadal, a two-time Wimbledon winner, made the announcement on his social media account on Thursday.

The Spaniard added that with this year’s Olympics taking place on clay at Roland Garros, he does not want to change surfaces. He most recently competed at the French Open. This news comes just one day after it was confirmed that Nadal will partner Carlos Alacaraz in the men’s doubles event at the Olympic Games.

During my post match press conference at Roland Garros I was asked about my summer calendar and since then I have been practicing on clay. It was announced yesterday that I will play at the summer Olympics in Paris, my last Olympics.

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) June 13, 2024

“During my post match press conference at Roland Garros I was asked about my summer calendar and since then I have been practising on clay. It was announced yesterday that I will play at the summer Olympics in Paris, my last Olympics. With this goal, we believe that the best for my body is not to change surface and keep playing on clay until then,” Nadal wrote in a post on X.

“It’s for this reason that I will miss playing at The Championships this year at Wimbledon. I am saddened not to be able to live this year the great atmosphere of that amazing event that will always be in my heart, and be with all the British fans that always gave me great support. I will miss you all,” he added.

Nadal also announced that he has added another tournament to his calendar: the Nordea Open in Nordea Open. The 37-year-old tennis great has competed in Bastad three times, most recently when he won the tournament in 2005.

“In order to prepare for the Olympic Games, I will play the tournament in Bastad, Sweden, a tournament that I played earlier in my career and where I had a great time both on and off the court. Looking forward to seeing you all there. Thank you,” Nadal wrote.

Nadal, who has recently struggled with injuries, missed the majority of the 2023 season and was eliminated in the first round of the 2024 French Open earlier this month.

Nadal, a two-time Olympic gold medalist (men’s singles in 2008 Beijing and men’s doubles in 2016 Rio de Janeiro), will continue his preparations for the Paris Games with the ATP 250 event in Bastad, Sweden, beginning July 15. (ANI)