Madrid: Rafael Nadal has announced that he will not compete in this year’s Miami Open presented by Itau. The world number three, who has never won the title in Miami, wants to prioritise his recovery ahead of the beginning of the clay-court swing in April.
Writing on Twitter on Tuesday, he said:
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Sad to announce that I won’t be playing in Miami, a city that I love. I need to fully recover and get ready for the clay court season in Europe. Special message to my fans in the US and in particular to the great Spanish speaking community FL who always give me a great support!??
— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) March 16, 2021
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The 34-year-old Spanish left-hander, who shares the all-time record of 20 men’s Grand Slam singles titles with Roger Federer, has not played since being ousted from last month’s Australian Open quarter-finals by Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Nadal pulled out of the Rotterdam Open and turned down a wildcard for the Dubai Tennis Championships due to a persistent back problem.
The Spanish star owns a 40-12 record in Miami, where he has reached the final five times. Nadal most recently competed at the ATP Masters 1000 event in 2017.
