Rafael Nadal injures wrist, pulls out of Canada, Cincinnati Masters
No. 2 Rafael Nadal withdrew from the Canada Masters and Cincinnati Masters on Wednesday after injuring his right wrist in practice.
Nadal's manager, Benito Pérez-Barbadillo, said the 28-year-old Spaniard felt pain while training in Mallorca on Tuesday. Tests revealed "a small disinsertion of the posterior ulnar pod of his right wrist," according to Pérez-Barbadillo, who added that Nadal will wear a cast for two to three weeks. Nadal plays left-handed and hits a two-handed backhand.
Nadal is the defending champion of both the Rogers Cup (Aug. 4-10 in Toronto) and the Western & Southern Open (Aug. 10-17 in Mason, Ohio), the official names of the Masters events. The tournaments are the two major tuneups preceding the U.S. Open, which begins on Aug. 25. Nadal, the defending U.S. Open champion, is tentatively scheduled to return for the last Grand Slam tournament of the year.
"Depending on the evolution of the injury that will be carefully followed by the doctors, including MRI tests, it will be decided then the return to competition, initially scheduled for the U.S. Open," Pérez-Barbadillo said.
Nadal is 44-8 this year with four titles, including his ninth French Open crown. He hasn't competed since a fourth-round loss to Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon on July 1.
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- Ben Estes
