Rafael Nadal withdrew from the Toronto Masters 2021, one day before his scheduled match against Lloyd Harris, the same player that beat him one week before in Washington DC. The Spaniard was looking to prepare himself before the US Open, which starts on August 30, but now his participation is at stake.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion missed Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics in the summer to recover his body after playing the entire clay season, in which he lost against Novak Djokovic in the semifinals of Roland Garros.
However, now the World No. 4 is still struggling to be in shape for the last Grand Slam of the year. While he was able to play some matches in Washington DC, he is far away from his best level. And now Nadal had less margin to improve. Here, check out why he won’t be playing in Toronto.
Why did Rafael Nadal pull out of the Toronto Masters 2021?
Nadal has been struggling with a foot injury, as the Spaniard said last week in Washington, where he seemedto hadtrouble moving around the court in his last match against Harris. While Nadal said that his foot “was better,” that isn’t the case anymore.
“Of course, it is not a happy situation after all the success that I had here in Canada, not being able to play this year after missing a year,” Nadal said in ainterview to address his withdrawal. “It’s a tough one, but that’s how it is today,” he added.
The five-time Toronto Masters 2021 champion couldn’t renew the title he won in 2019, when he beat Daniil Medvedev at Montréal. Nadal now has to decide if he plays at the Cincinnati Open, which starts next week (August 14).
