The organizers of the Madrid Masters have announced that the World number one, Novak Djokovic, has withdrawn from the tournament due to fitness issues.
No reason has been given for his withdrawal, though in a statement the tournament organisers wish Djokovic a “speedy recovery”.
The Serb, 35, has been troubled by a right elbow problem in recent weeks.
Djokovic is the top seed in the competition but a suspected elbow issue won’t permit him to participate in the competition which will commence on Wednesday, April 26.
According to NaijaNews.com, a short statement the organizers shared on Instagram on Saturday read: “Novak Djokovic is unable to compete at the Madrid Open.”
This announcement is coming less than three days after one of his arc-rivals in the tennis world, Rafael Nadal, confirmed his withdrawal from the Madrid Masters due to fitness issues.
Just like Nadal who has been out of tennis since January due to his hip injury fitness issues, it would be difficult for Djokovic to prepare for the French Open, which begins end of May.
Novak Djokovic was in action on Friday, in the quarter-final stage of the Banja Luka. Unfortunately, the 35-year-old Serb tennis star lost in straight sets to Bosnian-Herzegovinian’s Dusan Lajovic.
Before then, he lost to underdog Lorenzo Musetti at the Monte Carlo Masters earlier in April. After the defeat, Djokovic admitted that his elbow was “not in an ideal condition”.
Also, the two-time French Open champion was unable to compete in the Indian Wells and Miami because he chose not to receive the Covid-19 vaccination earlier this year.
“I was many levels below what I want,” he said on Friday after his defeat to Lajovic.
“Playing like that, I can’t win against opponents who are so solid on this surface. But what can I do? It’s simply a sport. I was trying but it wasn’t working.
“I didn’t feel very good physically on the court. My legs were slow, I missed a lot of balls. I played well at times, but generally well below standard.”
