Indian Wells and Miami Open will be without another superstar after Rafael Nadal decided to pull out of the tournaments due to injury.
The 22-time grand slam champion was on the initial entry list but has decided to forgo the events in order to recover from a nagging injury.
Nadal has not played any professional tennis events since losing in the second round of the Australian Open during which he aggravated a hip problem. The 36-year-old will instead focus on rehabilitation and physiotherapy.
“I am sad that I won’t be able to compete at Indian Wells nor Miami. Very sad not to be there,” said Nadal on Twitter.
“I’ll miss all my US fans but I hope to see them later this year during the summer swing.”
Rafael Nadal was beaten in the final of the Indian Wells last year before he decided to skip Miami Open which was then won by Carlos Alcaraz in his absence.
The Spaniard is a three-time champion at Indian Wells having won in 2007, 2009 and 2013 but has never won the title in Miami despite five appearances in the final and has not competed there since 2017.
Nick Kyrgios will also miss the events while Novak Djokovic could be forced out as well due to his vaccination status diverting the tournaments of star power.
