Rafael Nadal joins Roger Federer in withdrawing from US Open 2020, Novak Djokovic to play

In a surprising turn of events, Rafael Nadal has become the latest player to withdraw out of US Open 2020. Rafael Nadal’s absence is surprising since the player earlier had committed to playing the traditional warmup tournament ahead of US Open 2020, which served as a hint to tennis fans that the Spanish ace will feature in the Grand Slam.

However, as a result of the latest update, Rafael Nadal joins Roger Federer in opting out of US Open 2020. The latest development meant that for the first time since Wimbledon 2004, two of the 'Big 3' will not feature in a main draw of the majors. Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal means that out of the traditional ‘Big 3’, only Novak Djokovic will be appearing at the US Open 2020, making the World No.1 an outright favourite to win his 18th Grand Slam title. Atleast one out of Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal have featured in a main draw since 1999.

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Defending champ Rafael Nadal pulls out of US Open 2020

Announcing his decision via his social media accounts, Rafael Nadal revealed that he has opted out of US Open 2020 owing to coronavirus concerns. The player wrote that the decision to skip US Open 2020 has been arrived after thinking about it many times. The King of Clay tweeted that since the coronavirus situation is complicated worldwide and the COVID-19 cases are increasing, so it looks like the pandemic still isn’t in control.

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Referring to the US Open schedule which was dated to begin from August 31, Rafael Nadal further wrote that while this is a decision he never wanted to take, he has decided to follow his heart this time and will therefore not travel to play the US Open 2020. The player also paid respects to the USTA, the US Open 2020 organizers as well as ATP for trying to put together the event for players and fans all over the globe. While concluding, Rafael Nadal said that the reduced tennis calendar is barbaric and that he understands and thanks the efforts that are being put into scheduling tennis matches and tournaments.

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Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal meant that he will join Roger Federer in sitting out of the US Open 2020. The 34-year-old’s decision to not be a part of the US Open schedule also means that the player will not have a chance to defend his title, which he won last year, giving Djokovic the perfect opportunity to reclaim the title he last won in 2018. It also puts on hold Nadal's bid to equal Roger Federer’s men’s record of winning 20 Grand Slam titles. It would be interesting to see if Nadal participates in the French Open 2020, which is expected to take place in September, having been delayed this year due to COVID-19.

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Image Courtesy: twitter/rafaelnadal