Rafael Nadal withdraws from Australian Open 2024 with new hip injury

Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from the 2024 Australian Open due to the emergence of a new hip injury.

Nadal returned to competitive tennis this week in the Brisbane International after being out of action for nearly a year. He defeated Dominic Thiem and Jason Kubler before losing to Jordan Thompson in the quarterfinals.

In his match against Thompson, the Spaniard took an off-court medical timeout and later told the media that he felt pain in his left hip, the same area where he had surgery last year.

Rafael Nadal has now posted an update on his injury status on X (formerly Twitter). He announced with a heavy heart that he was withdrawing from the upcoming Melbourne Major (January 14-28) due to an MRI finding a micro tear in his hip muscle. He will fly back to Spain for treatment.

"Hi all, during my last match in Brisbane I had a small problem on a muscle that as you know made me worried. Once I got to Melbourne I have had the chance to make an MRI and I have micro tear on a muscle, not in the same part where I had the injury and that’s good news," Nadal wrote.

"Right now I am not ready to compete at the maximum level of exigence in 5 sets matches. I’m flying back to Spain to see my doctor, get some treatment and rest," he added.

The 22-time Grand Slam champion also said that his current priority is to get in shape for the French Open and the Paris Olympics, which will take place in May and July, respectively.

"I have worked very hard during the year for this comeback and as I always mentioned my goal is to be at my best level in 3 months. Within the sad news for me for not being able to play in front of the amazing Melbourne crowds," Nadal said.

"This is not very bad news and we all remain positive with the evolution for the season. I really wanted to play here in Australia and I have had the chance to play a few matches that made me very happy and positive. Thanks all for the support and see you soon!" he added.

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Looking back at Rafael Nadal's Australian Open title wins

Rafael Nadal pictured with his Australian Open 2022 trophy

Rafael Nadal has won the Australian Open twice in his career, once in 2009 and later in 2022.

In 2009, Nadal defeated Christophe Rochus, Roko Karanusic, Tommy Haas, Fernando Gonzalez, Gilles Simon and Fernando Verdasco en route to the final. He then faced arch-rival Roger Federer in the title bout and took the trophy home after a five-set thriller.

The Spaniard overcame adversity to win the hardcourt Slam in 2022, coming back from two sets down to defeat Daniil Medvedev in an epic final. He had beaten Marcos Giron, Yannick Hanfmann, Karen Khachanov, Adrian Mannarino, Denis Shapovalov and Matteo Berrettini in the tournament before that.