Nadal’s now a doubt for O2 after knee KO
RAFAEL NADAL could miss the ATP Finals in London after pulling out of the Paris Masters with knee problems.
The world No.1 had his right knee strapped and struggled with his movement during his third-round win over Pablo Cuevas on Thursday.
Nadal played it down afterwards then withdrew ahead of his scheduled quarter-final against Filip Krajinovic.
And the Spanish star said yesterday: “The pain during the match was too much but it was not the moment to stop.
“I don’t like to stop during the match, even if I’ve had to do it a couple of times in my life. Especially winning the match, thinking I have some hours in between to do some treatment. That’s what I did.
“But being honest with the tournament, being honest with my opponents and being honest with myself, the way I am today, I don’t see myself playing three more matches here.”
After wrist problems affected his 2016 season, Nadal had stayed fit throughout a remarkably successful 2017 campaign, winning two Grand Slam titles and returning to the top of the rankings.
But knee issues that have dogged his career resurfaced in Shanghai last month and caused him to miss Basel last week.
Nadal had hoped rest would fix it and there must now be serious questions over whether he’ll risk worsening the problem by playing at the O2 Arena.
The ATP Finals are staged on indoor hard courts, Nadal’s least favourite surface, and begin on November 12. He has missed the tournament, the biggest title to elude him during his career, on five previous occasions because of injury.
But Nadal did not want to speculate and added: “I cannot talk about London now. I am sad enough to pull out from here. I’m going to try my best to be playing in London.”