Rafael Nadal has announced he will not be playing at Wimbledon or the Olympic Games this summer in order to protect his body.
The 35-year-old, who won the last of his two titles at the All England Club in 2010, revealed his decision on Twitter, much to the disappointment of his 15.5million followers.
Nadal wrote: ‘Hi all, I have decided not to participate at this year’s Championships at Wimbledon and the Olympic Games in Tokyo.
‘It’s never an easy decision to take but after listening to my body and discuss it with my team I understand that it is the right decision.’
Nadal has always found the transition from clay to grass season tough on his body and, in particular, the strain on his knees.
With just two weeks between the conclusion of the French Open in Paris and Wimbledon starting this year, there is less time for players to adjust.
Wimbledon will run from June 28 to July 11, while the Olympics is be staged from July 23 to August 8.
Rafael Nadal has announced he won’t be competing at Wimbledon or the Olympic Games
The Spaniard said he has ‘listened to my body’ and struggled to recover from the French Open
The Spaniard was clearly struggling physically towards the end of his brutal loss to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals at Roland Garros and was deliberately vague about his schedule afterwards.
Nadal, who will be replaced as third seed at Wimbledon by Stefanos Tsitsipas, missed the London-based Championships in 2004, 2009 and 2016 because of injury and will no doubt see the US Open in New York as a better chance to win a 21st Grand Slam title.
Nadal is currently tied on 20 with rival Roger Federer, 39, and one ahead of Novak Djokovic, who has 19.
He has lifted the trophy at Flushing Meadows in New York on four occasions, including in 2017 and 2019.
The Spaniard continued: ‘The goal is to prolong my career and continue to do what makes me happy, that is to compete at the highest level and keep fighting for those professional and personal goals at the maximum level of competition.
Clay-court king Nadal was knocked out of the French Open in the semi-final by Novak Djokovic
He needed medical treatment during one of the breaks in the Djokovic match last week
‘The fact that there has only been two weeks between RG (Roland Garros) and Wimbledon, didn’t make it easier on my body to recuperate after the always demanding clay court season.
‘They have been two months of great effort and the decision I take is focused looking at the mid and long term.’
Nadal is a double Olympic champion having won gold in singles in Beijing in 2008 and in doubles with Marc Lopez in Rio in 2016, when he also carried Spain’s flag in the opening ceremony.
‘I want to send a special message to my fans around the world, to those in the United Kingdom and Japan in particular,’ he said.
‘The Olympic Games always meant a lot and they were always a priority as a Sports person, I found the spirit that every sports person in the world wants to live.
‘I personally had the chance to live three of them and had the honour to be the flag bearer for my country.’
The 35-year-old has always found the transition from clay to grass tough on his body and believes opting out of Wimbledon will best protect his body and his career moving forward
It is a major blow to the men’s tennis event at the Olympics with Federer and Djokovic also unsure of their participation.
Federer is still looking to add an Olympic gold medal to his glittering CV but said he is ‘in two minds’ earlier this month. It remains unclear how Nadal’s decision will affect Federer.
‘I don’t know, I feel two ways,’ Federer was quoted as saying two weeks ago.
‘I would love to play. I wish things were better around the world that we wouldn’t even have to debate the thought of is it going to happen, am I going to play or not?
‘My wish and hope and dream is that I can play it. But it needs to make sense for me, my team, my family, my country.
‘I’m still waiting to see how things are going to develop the next couple of weeks and month.’
The news about double Olympic champion Nadal is a big blow to Spain’s medal hopes in Tokyo. Pictured: Nadal celebrating his gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China
Djokovic has vowed to play in Japan provided there is a crowd – something he has intimated is non-negotiable for his involvement.
The plan at this moment is to welcome a home Japanese crowd and restrict the travel of foreign fans.
Japan also confirmed on Thursday that is is to ease coronavirus emergency measures in Tokyo from Sunday.
The capital is currently following strict restrictions in a bid to combat Japan’s fourth wave of cases.
Tokyo and six other areas will, from Sunday, come under what is known as a quasi-state of emergency until July 11.
Fans at sports events will be limited to 10,000 and the organising committee is set to make a decision on spectators by the end of the June.