Rafael Nadal is withdrawing from this year’s French Open, the tennis tournament he’s won 14 times, after suffering a hip injury in January’s Australian Open.
(Bloomberg) — Rafael Nadal is withdrawing from this year’s French Open, the tennis tournament he’s won 14 times, after suffering a hip injury in January’s Australian Open.
Nadal, 36, said in a Thursday press conference that the 2024 season could be his last. He’s won 22 grand slam titles, with his most-recent victory coming at last year’s French Open, when he defeated Norway’s Casper Ruud in straight sets.
Nicknamed the ‘King of Clay,’ Nadal amassed the majority of his grand slams in Paris, winning 14 of his 18 appearances there and posting an overall record of 112 wins to 3 losses at Roland Garros. He’s currently tied for the most major wins with Djokovic, 35, who will be among the top seeds at this year’s French Open.
Nadal has missed the majority of the 2023 season. His absence leaves the French Open field the most open it has been in the last two decades, given his history of dominance. The tournament begins Monday.
The average viewership of the 2022 men’s final was 5.2 million, up 9.7% from the 2021 match between Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas, according to data from the tournament.
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