Novak Djokovic pulls out of Madrid Open with elbow niggle
Novak Djokovic has opted against taking part in the Madrid Open with an injured elbow as the world No 1 announces his withdrawal from the Masters event on the eve of the draw.
The withdrawal will come as a blow to the organisers of the Madrid Open who have already had to deal with the withdrawal of Rafael Nadal.
There is great concern about Djokovic’s readiness for the French Open, which gets underway in a month’s time.
Djokovic has played with strapping on his elbow since his match against Lorenzo Musetti at Monte Carlo.
The injury has clearly impacted Djokovic in his defeats to Musetti and Dusan Lajovic and he admitted that playing through the niggle was not an ideal set of circumstances.
It seems now that Djokovic has decided that the benefits of getting time on clay will not outweigh the risk of aggravating the injury and not being at full fitness for the French Open.
“I hope to get into tip-top shape for Roland Garros. I want to play my best tennis there,” Djokovic said earlier this week in Banja Luka.
“The conditions are totally different there in comparison with Monte Carlo and Banja Luka. There are still several weeks to practice and play. In the previous seasons, I’ve always had an unsatisfying and slow start on clay, and then played better tennis in the final stages. I hope to repeat the same pattern this year.”
Djokovic reached the semi-finals in Madrid last season before losing to eventual champion Carlos Alcaraz.
He has admitted to struggling with form and fitness.
“Well, you always hope for the good day in the office, but yeah, I know I’m not playing so great and he’s playing very well, so I knew it was going to be a tough match,” Djokovic said after his loss in Monte Carlo.
“It’s not a great day for me, so I’m not really in the mood to speak,” a downcast Djokovic added.
He will retain the top ranking through the week of the Madrid Open despite being set to drop the points he won in Spain last term as Alcaraz can only hold onto his points from last term in both Barcelona and Madrid.
Djokovic has won the Madrid Open three times across his career and his withdrawal from the event means that the only former champions in the field will be Alcaraz and two-time winner Alexander Zverev.
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