The 2024 Australian Open begins this Sunday, January 14 (until the 28th). The first Grand Slam of the season looks very promising since almost the entire top 30 is on its feet. In both men and women. Few packages are to be deplored. But there are still a few who will miss the Australian Open this year. Find the main absentees from the 2024 edition.
Rafael Nadal
A man is missing and the world of tennis is depopulated. The audience at the Australian Open was delighted to see Rafael Nadal for one last dance. The Spaniard made his return to the ATP 250 in Brisbane. After a year away from the field, the Mallorcan with 22 Grand Slam titles made a convincing comeback, an easy winner over Dominic Thiem in the first round then over the Australian Jason Kubler. He then put up a very tough fight against another Australian player, Jordan Thompson, losing after more than three hours of play. But his body said stop again. On his social networks, Rafael Nadal indicated that he was suffering from a micro tear in a muscle and that he was not ready to compete at the maximum level of demands in 5-set matches.
Nick Kyrgios
He will not be at work on the court of this Australian Open but in a commentary booth. After a successful first week as a consultant on Tennis Channel during the Masters last November, Nick Kyrgios will continue his career change. Still injured and absent, he will join the Eurosport international commentary team during the Australian Open, after having already freelanced on Tennis Channel during the ATP Masters at the end of the season. While he has only played one match since October 2022, the Wimbledon 2022 finalist remains close to tennis but still far from competition. A volcanic character, a spectacular player, he will also be missed by the Australian public.
Surprising semi-finalist of the tournament in 2021, Aslan Karatsev is also out for the 2024 edition. The Russian injured his knee during the first tournament of the year in Brisbane and could miss several months of competition.
READ ALSO. Tennis. “If it were up to me, I wouldn’t want to play anymore,” Nick Kyrgios considers retirement
Karolina Muchova
She too has already tasted the last four of the Australian major. She is the only one absent from the world top 10. Karolina Muchova did everything to participate in the Australian Open. But his wrist still hurts. Already absent during the WTA Masters, the Czech announced that the injury she thought was healed has flared up again this winter. Unfortunately, the pain returned in the middle of my preparation, confided Muchova on social networks. Semi-finalist at the Us Open five months ago, she would have been very dangerous in Melbourne.
Karolina Muchova is the only member of the top 10 absent in Melbourne. | PHOTO: AFP See full screen Karolina Muchova is the only member of the top 10 absent in Melbourne. | PHOTO: AFP
Two other notable absences are to be deplored. First of all, the American Madison Keys (13th in the world), semi-finalist in 2022, will not play in Melbourne, still hampered by a painful shoulder. “ Unfortunately, I am struggling with a shoulder injury and my medical staff has advised me to withdraw from this year’s Australian Open., she wrote on her Instagram account. JI know that I am making the right choice for my body to take the time necessary to let it heal. » The Czech Petra Kvitova, twice winner of Wimbledon, will not be there either since she is expecting a baby in the summer of 2024. Her career is therefore on hiatus.
Simona Halep
Now, almost no one thinks about her anymore. Simon Halep, two Grand Slam titles under her belt, was suspended for four years for doping and will therefore not be present in Melbourne either. Finalist in 2018, the 32-year-old Romanian has been on forced rest since October 2022, after a positive doping test for roxadustat, an anti-anemic drug. But she says she is innocent and defends herself by accusing a food supplement, collagen, which, given the low doses recorded, would have been contaminated by the banned substance. In February, the tennis champion will know the final verdict of the Court of Arbitration for Sport and cannot see herself continuing her career if the sanction were to be confirmed.
2024-01-13 12:00:08
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