Rafa withdraws from Cincinnati
Photo by Beth Wilson
Rafa has announced via Facebook and Twitter that he will not play in the upcoming Cincinnati Masters. No word on if he plans to try and squeak a lower-tier tournament in before the US Open.
His Facebook post:
Hola a todos, un nuevo mensaje para anunciar algo que no me hace feliz, pero lamentándolo mucho no participaré en el torneo de Cincinnati la semana que viene. Sigo sin estar en condiciones para participar. Tengo muchos seguidores allí y recuerdos inolvidables como el de 2008. Continúo con mi recuperación y entrenamientos. Gracias!
Hi all, another message to announce something that definitely doesn’t make me happy, but unfortunately I won’t be competing at the tournament in Cincinnati next week. I am still not ready to play. I have many fans in Cincy and unforgettable moments such as 2008. I am continuing with my recup and practice. Thanks!
And tweets:
No podré participar en el torneo de Cincinnati. Sigo sin estar en condiciones. Tengo recuerdos inolvidables de 2008. Continúo recuperándome.
— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) August 9, 2012
I won’t be playing at Cincinnati Open. I am still not ready to play. I have unforgettable moments in 2008. I am continuing with my recup.
— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) August 9, 2012
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Sad, but once again, this is not an entrirely surprising announcement. Be well, Rafa.
It’s both good and bad. It’s bad because it means he’s still injured. It’s good because he’s doing the right thing by letting his body heal completely.
I think we should all be ready for a USO withdrawl as well. It will be the right call if it will mean he could rebound in the Asian swing or even next year.
I don’t think this means he’s still injured. He’s practising, after all. I think he probably just isn’t with the right preparation and would rather go slower?. I hope so anyway.
I am glad he is taking enough time off to be 100%.
It’s so sad! He never withdrawed from three tournaments!
Wasn’t he training? No words about his knee or his health. Is he just not in form to play or is it because of his knees? Maybe the injury is worse than expected! Just a matter of time when he will pull out of the US Open.
Get well soon champ!
DavidjNadal said on Twiter that Rafa play a small tournament before the U.S. Open, which begins August 19!!!
Commiserations to all. TBH, I would be genuinely surprised if Nadal chooses to play USO. I would think the likeliest scenario is a brief Asian swing including Shanghai, then the WTFs, possibly with Bercy as a warm-up.
Nadal took time off after the AO this year, but by Miami QF he was having knee tendon issues. He played a full clay season this year, winning all the tournaments with the exception of Madrid: query whether this latest development was already giving him trouble before or during Roland Garros, or whether clay is still a refuge. I’m not a doctor or physical therapist, but I’d be surprised if there wasn’t a cumulative effect of playing so many tournaments in such a short span of time even on a forgiving surface.
Having been a competitive tennis player in my younger years, I believe hard court play is the worst place for Rafa to come back to. You don’t really want all that pounding on “soft” knees. Just my opinion.
I absolutely agree ,going on to a hard court now would send Rafa back to square one.Best to wait until he is 100% ready to play again.(In my opinion too.)
It’s a valid opinion and I agree with you 100%; everyone knows that hard court tennis is bad for injured/healing knee tendons – and a best of five slam is the worst possible event for Rafa to return to. He knows that – and that he needs to think in the longer term now in order to sustain his career. So as much as I would miss watching him play, I find myself hoping he’ll withdraw from the USO too.
Aww pffft – more disappointing news. Nothing to do but wish him better and wait. Patience and chocolate, as somebody said recently.
Odd though, that he posted this message with a pic of him sitting on a piece of gym equipment: I wonder if this week’s training and practice has further aggravated the knee injury, or he just hasn’t had enough to feel fully ready for tough competitive play next week. Questions, questions, and no real answers. But it’s okay Rafa, we can wait. Just let us know when you’re coming back and we’ll be there. I hope you make a full recovery.
I wonder if this is a more serious injury or that he is giving himself more time to heal. In the past, he’s needed to play several tournaments to bring up his level of play so my guess is that he’ll be making an early exit from the USO.
I think the injury is not the reason cos he has said he is practicing, when he practiced before the olympics it was impossible,it’s more to do with the preparation and he feels he is still not ready to compete at the highest level yet IMO. He would not want another shock Rosol defeat and maybe this has affected his confidence so he wants to be fully prepared mentally and physically.
I would love to see him at the USO , confident and healthy and he has lots of points to defend . Rafa will stay no3 since Murray has withdrawn from Toronto injured sadly and he is defending Cinnci but rankings all irrelevant really when you are not at no1 or 2.
We are all missing you Rafa.
Don’t agree with you, Sharon. Rafael won’tt miss tournaments like this if he he didn’t have injury problems. He is too tough mentally. In fact he is the strongest among the current tennis players. Regards …
Miss Rafa more than I can say but only hope he comes back when he is 100%
Vamos our Rafa & God bless.
I believe Rafa is truly injured. I think his confidence is fine. He is mentally ready but his body is not. There is a sense of sadness in his statements and if he could play he would. As for the USO, only Rafa and his Drs. will know about that. Tennis is so much a part of his life and he is still so young. May Rafa heal and
return to tennis to bring joy to himself and so many. He is a great competitor and brings so much to the game.
This is only speculation , sky sports news have just said there are rumours that Rafa may miss the USO also.
Team Nadal have not confirmed this as yet.
If Rafa misses the USO, would it be a longer absence from competition than the length of time during which he last missed Wimbledon?
Yes. It would be MUCH longer. When he missed Wimbledon in 2009, that was the only tournament he missed. He came back to play in Canada and Cincy and the USO. I think if he skips the USO this time, we may not see him until sometime later in the season, if at all. Seems like he really needs to get healthy and feel confident running and cutting on the knees before trying to play competitive tennis again. The legs are BY FAR the most important thing for a professional athlete. If they don’t trust their legs, then everything else comes into question.
It makes me wonder if this will be a career-limiting injury…
I think given that he is “only” 26, he is likely going to take his time and get healthy in a more permanent way. I would not rule out Rafa having some type of surgery on his tendons to correct the problem. I know his team is probably looking at every avenue to get him healthy in both the short and intermediate term. I’ve said before that stem cell therapy is not out of the question as long as they can use Rafa’s own stem cells to regenerate his tendons. This is probably the least invasive and most effective way to go but typically can take several months to take effect. I think this fall may be the best time for all this so he can be ready for the 2013 season. I’ve also heard Uncle Toni say that they could limit his matches at hardcourt tournaments as he gets older. In effect that is what is happening now. Just speculating, but I think the hope has to be that Rafa can play the USO and not lose all of those points and take the fall off to recuperate to 100% for 2013.
We certainly can’t be surprised if he does skip the USO and the fall swing. I don’t believe he’d fall to 5th unless Ferrer has deep runs at the USO and Fall MS1000s. Even Murray seems a bit burned out. I think the US hardcourt season is really going get worse unless players are rested and healthy. Seems like this is the most dificult part of the season for a lot of players and turns into a war of attrition.
I think that would be wise, best for the long term. You are so missed Rafa!!! Whatever it takes for you to heal is what we all want for you…
Really a very sad news for us (Rafa Fans). Without Rafa, tennis looks totallly boring! Now, getting mentally prepared to hear the news in coming days about him missing USO too. We share your frustration, rafael and at least there is one satisfaction that you are not rushing things. Hope everything will fall in place with regard to fitness issues. Get well soon, Rafa . Dying to see you on court. Best wishes!!!
Well, it’s so sad that it is true and not an illusion (the pain & suffering) and not much Rafa can do about it except rehab & wait. I agree & am also waiting for the news about him cancelling his appearance at the US Open unfortunately. I think it’s for the best that he rest those precious knees of his. I wonder if they are insured by Lloyd’s of London and for how much! Vamos Rafa & here’s wishing you a speedy recovery ;) Tennis just ain’t the same w/out you!
I suspect that points and ranking are a long way from Rafa’s mind right now given the chronic and unpredictable state of his knees. He seems to have had PRP injections to stimulate an acute healing response in his tendon, and he has followed the prescribed course of rest and physio prior to recommencing training and practice. Rafa’s likely priorities now are coming up with a strategy to sustain his career over the longer term and being able to compete in the shorter term. It is unfortunate that a hard court best-of-five slam is the is possibly going to be the tournament at which he makes a return to competition. Although I would miss seeing him play as much as anyone else here, I hope he pulls out of the US Open too.
Hi Heath,
I actually think the MS1000s are tougher on his knees because of having to play 4 matches in 5 days with only one day of rest. I realize these are best of three matches but if the matches go three sets, as they sometimes tend to do in the semis and finals, then they feel more like winning a best of 5 match in three sets or 4 sets. The last few years I can recall the knee problems Rafa ran into weren’t as much at majors, where you get two nights of rest between matches, but at MS1000s where you are forced to three consecutive matches if you get to the finals. This week at Toronto was even worse because many players had to play two matches a day for two days because of the rain delays not allowing matches to even start on the scheduled day. 2 nights of rest at majors between matches actually allows for good amount of recovery and recuperation. I think the semis/finals of the USO is a little tougher because that is supposed to be back to back days even though it hasn’t been the last 3 years.
You could be right there, now I come to think of it. The rest/recovery time in between matches is just as important the number of sets played. but I suppose the real issue here is the hard court. I can see him playing fewer HC tournaments in the coming years.
I all,
Thought we all Rafa Fans need cheering up someone tweeted this as a reminder of our man, personality and charisma in action (not that we need reminding!). The vid is all about Rafa being back!
Hope you don’t mind Miri me posting before it is probably deleted due to copyright or something like that.
ENJOY! XXXX
Thanks! Uplifting and fun to watch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=malaG0Q6oEU
Another beauty for us all obsessive Rafa Nadal fans to enjoy. Lets not be sad but just look in awesome how much he has done to the sport, to us and will continue to with recovering for the longetivity of his career. Hope this and Rafa seeing this! givse us all and him all positive energy x
I read someone else’s story named Dianne and her daughter attending Indian Wells tornament and it was like an out of body experiance for me because th at is what I Diane wanted for me and my daughter, Caralea last year. It was a nice story and written very well but life gets tough sometimes and that is really true. It just depends on how we handle what befalls us…how FAITH in oneself and keeping deep in prayor close to God is what we need to focus on. I wanted custody of my daughter but my rights were ignored so I LEARNED TO LEAN ON GOD just so I can find happiness again. – Rafa>>>>Please please take it easy and pace yourself and don’t feel pressured into thinking that you have to compete in every tournament or that we will forget about you. Maria Sharapova had a torn rotator cuff that kept her out off the court for a long time but she came back and I, for one was very happy she did. Your health as you know is what makes you so strong…so don’t give up and don’t get depressed…take your time and your reward for doing so will be excellant and we will all rejoice at seeing you come back better than ever.
Too good,Diane.Yes,Rafa will come back stronger & better.
My biggest worry is that he’ll go so long without playing tennis that he’ll get over it! You know… “Well, life goes on, plenty of time for fishing & play station. No stress on the body, money still coming out my ears, more time spent at home with family & friends! Tennis pfffffffffff, who needs it?!”
I’m nuts aren’t i?
I would like to know from Rafa how serious the injury is. Given that there is no official word, the rest seems hearsay.
ditto!
there’s a tweet by a mallorcan journalist (not david nadal, but cristian suarez) reprting that:
a. rafa does not know yet whether he will be at the US Open. He said neither yes nor no, I don’t know it right now
b. rafa said this injury is diefferent from the previous ones, but did not explain into more details. he just added it’s taking longer to recover…
i’m no longer optimistic about his taking part to the US Open, I reckon they pull out after he’s done with his sponsor engagements.
I’m just hoping he’s coming back eventually, but the chance seems more and more remote every day :-(
I think we’ll see Rafa at the US Open.
MISS YOU !!!!!!!!!!!
Even not knowing exactly where he is at in regard to recovery and preparation, it would seem missing the US Open would make a lot of sense. It’s well documented how tough the hc season is on his knees, why not recover fully and start what is likely to be his new norm; playing less. Tournaments and sponsors may be unhappy, but that’s part of it. Ranking will be hurt, but that really only adds one tougher opponent at an earlier match up. With Murray’s emergence, that too is kind of irrelevant.
I wouldn’t fancy his chances in NY now, either. Lot of time off, his worst surface, Nole and Murray’s best, Feds second best, Delpo is right there…hoping he rests up and fully recovers.
Anyone know if this is authentic: https://twitter.com/stevegtennis/status/234584683986436096 ?
Probably about as authentic as that leak from a supposed Nadal camp insider earlier this week that Rafa was going to take the rest of 2012 off. Who knows.
I feel quite certain that Rafa will go to New York – he’ll have other sponsor/charity commitments to honour. But I’m less certain as to whether he’ll actually play…
Perhaps the source is David J. Nadal: https://twitter.com/davidjnadal/status/234341993478766592/photo/1
In an interview today with a Spanish journalist (@crissuarez), Nadal said “it is not certain whether he will go to U.S. Open. ‘Neither yes nor no. [I] do not know. … The recovery is slow. It’s a different injury to the earlier ones but that remedy must be accepted.’ “
Wow, how did my message not post until now? Miri, u may want to delete it …