Rafael Nadal pulls out of Indian Wells and Miami Masters

What’s the story?

Rafael Nadal has been ruled out of the tennis circuit for a while as the Spaniard announced his withdrawal from both the Indian Wells and the Miami Masters tournaments on Friday.

In a Facebook post, the 16-time Grand Slam champion said that since the injury is in the same area as the one he suffered at the Australian Open, he won’t be featuring at either of the two events, which are scheduled one after the other, starting from March 8.

In case you didn’t know

Nadal lost to Roger Federer at both Indian Wells and Miami last year. While his campaign at the former was short-lived as he lost in the Round of 16, he finished as the runner-up in Miami for the fifth time.

The heart of the matter

It was during his quarter-final clash with eventual runner-up Marin Cilic at the Melbourne Park that the World No. 2 suffered a Grade 1 injury to the iliopsoas, which is an inner hip muscle. Nadal retired after conceding the first couple of games in the fifth set and was hoping to make a return to the Tour at this week’s Abierto Mexicano in Acapulco, where he was the losing finalist last year.

However, he felt a pinch in the same area in his final training session just ahead of his first round clash with Feliciano Lopez and he called it quits.

Nadal’s latest injury will rob him of a big opportunity to wrest back the World No. 1 ranking from Federer before the claycourt swing. With a solid showing in Acapulco, he had a chance of reclaiming it, should the Swiss have a premature exit in Indian Wells.

What’s next?

Nadal is expected to be back during the clay season where he has a staggering 4680 points to defend, having won titles at the Monte Carlo Masters, the Madrid Masters, the Barcelona Open and the French Open last year.

The Monte Carlo Masters is the first of the three big clay Masters and it starts on April 15.

Author’s take

As confirmed now, Nadal took the right decision to opt out of ATP Acapulco. With a crucial part of the season coming up for the southpaw right after the North American swing, it is of utmost importance that he takes the necessary steps to recover fully before coming back for the defence of his clay titles.