Confirmed: Rafael Nadal will miss Doha and Dubai
As expected, Rafael Nadal will miss the tournaments in Doha and Dubai.
by Nikolaus Fink
last edit:
Feb 14, 2023, 01:48 pm
This news is really not to be sold as breaking news: Rafael Nadal cannot attend the ATP tournaments in Doha (February 20th to 26th) and Dubai (February 27th) due to his injury to the iliopsoas muscle (hip flexor) at the Australian Open. February to March 4th). That was confirmed on Tuesday.
Nadal injured himself in Melbourne in the second round against Mackenzie McDonald and then communicated a downtime of six to eight weeks. Accordingly, a comeback at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells could be possible, but a return to sand in Monte Carlo seems more likely.
Cilic is also out longer
In addition to Nadal, Marin Cilic also misses the two events in the Persian Gulf. The Croatian had knee surgery in January and therefore already missed the Davis Cup duel against Austria. It is not known how long the 2014 US Open winner will be out.
Number one at the ATP 250 tournament in Doha will be Andrey Rublev, at the ATP 500 event in Dubai there are many indications that world number one Novak Djokovic will start. The 22-time Grand Slam winner is currently preparing for his tour return in Belgrade .