Indian Wells director Tommy Haas ‘disappointed’ by Rafael Nadal withdrawal as refunds announced

Ewan West 07 Mar 2024 10:19 AM

Rafael Nadal during a practice session in Brisbane

Indian Wells tournament director Tommy Haas has expressed his disappointment on behalf of the tournament after tennis great Rafael Nadal announced his late withdrawal.

Former world No 2 Haas wished Nadal “continued healing” and for a swift return to action, while sharing his hope that the Spaniard would return to Indian Wells in the future.

Nadal was set to face 2016 Wimbledon runner-up Milos Raonic in the opening round in Indian Wells on Thursday, but he pulled out due to his physical condition late on Wednesday.

“It is with great sadness that I have to withdraw from this amazing tournament. Everyone knows how much I love this place and how much I love to play here at Indian Wells,” the Spaniard said in a statement.

“That’s also one of the reasons why I came very early to the desert to practice and try to get ready. I have been working hard and practicing and you all know I took a test this weekend but I don’t find myself ready to play at the highest level at such an important event.

“It is not an easy decision, it’s a tough one as a matter of fact but I can’t lie to myself and lie to the thousands of fans. I will miss you all and I am sure the tournament will be a great success.”

READ MORE: Jim Courier weighs in on Rafael Nadal’s Indian Wells withdrawal amid retirement fears

The tournament announced that fans who purchased individual evening session tickets to Stadium 1 for Thursday — when Nadal’s match was due to take place — would be eligible for a refund.

In a statement shared on the tournament’s website, Haas said: “We are disappointed that Rafa is unable to play in the BNP Paribas Open, but we wish him continued healing and hope he can be back in action again soon.

“He is one of the all-time fan favourites here, and we hope to see him back in Indian Wells again in the future.”

Nadal was looking to make his competitive return to action at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament, having lost to Carlos Alcaraz in the Netflix Slam exhibition in Las Vegas on Sunday.

The former world No 1, who is a three-time Indian Wells winner (2007, 2009, 2013), has not played an ATP event since the Brisbane International in January, where he sustained a hip injury during his quarter-final defeat to Jordan Thompson.

Before Brisbane, the 37-year-old had not played for almost a year, having suffered a hip psoas muscle injury at the 2023 Australian Open. The Mallorcan underwent arthroscopic surgery to treat the injury in June last year.

Ahead of the 2024 Indian Wells Open, Haas named Novak Djokovic as the man to beat at the event as he discussed the lofty standards the Serbian great has set.

“Djokovic has had such success there, he’s coming back. I feel like every time he doesn’t win a tournament, we all look at it as a failure, right? And I hate to use that word anyway,” the German told Eurosport.

“But even the semis at the Australian Open, we all look at it like, ‘Oh, he lost in the semis, he didn’t win the Australian Open.’ But you know how many people of players would love to get to a semi-final one time.

“It’s really outrageous, so you can never count him out. He’s obviously always gonna be a favourite and he’s always gonna look at himself as like, the favourite to win the title.”