Rafael Nadal's US Open preparations have suffered another setback after the Spaniard withdrew from next week's Cincinnati hardcourt event with a nagging foot issue, organisers of the Masters 1000 tournament said on Wednesday.
Nadal suffered a shock exit last week in Washington, where he kicked off his lead-up to the US Open, and on Tuesday pulled out of the ongoing Masters 1000 event in Toronto with a left-foot issue.
The Spaniard is the latest in a number of high-profile names to sit out next week's Western & Southern Open, joining a list that includes Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Sofia Kenin.
In his pre-tournament news conference in Toronto on Sunday, Nadal said a recurring foot issue he has been dealing with since 2005 returned at the French Open, where he fell to eventual champion Djokovic in the semi-finals.
When discussing his Toronto withdrawal Nadal, who also sat out Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics, said: "With this pain, I am not able to enjoy, and I really don't believe that I have chances to fight for the things that I really need to fight."
The US Open runs from August 30-September 12.
Canadian Milos Raonic, who was runner-up at the 2020 Western & Southern Open, which was held in New York in a bid to limit travel ahead of the US Open due to the COVID-19 outbreak, has also withdrawn from the Cincinnati event with a heel injury.
Nishikori pulls out of Toronto Masters with shoulder injury
Japan's Kei Nishikori became the latest withdrawal from the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Toronto on Wednesday with a shoulder injury.
Nishikori, a finalist at the Canadian hard court stop in 2016, had been set to face seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in a second-round clash on Wednesday but dropped out complaining of right shoulder pain.
"I am disappointed to announce that I have decided to withdraw from my match today,” Nishikori said in a statement.
"The right shoulder is very sore after a long stretch of tennis and I do not want to risk further injury.
"I will now spend my focus on getting healthy and back on court again.”
Hurkacz will receive a walkover into the third round, where he will face Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili.
