MADRID, (Reuters) – Rafael Nadal’s Wimbledon defence remained in doubt yesterday after the world number one said he faced a tough two weeks of treatment to overcome knee problems before the grasscourt grand slam.
The Spaniard was forced out of this week’s traditional Wimbledon warm-up at Queen’s Club with tendinitis and said he would do everything in his power to get fit for the All-England club starting on June 22.
“I will give 200 percent to be at 100 percent for the most important date in world tennis and the tournament that has always excited me the most,” the Spaniard said in a statement after undergoing tests at a clinic in Barcelona.
“I have been playing with pain in my knees for several months and personally I cannot continue like this,” he added.
“The pain was limiting me physically in certain movements which meant I was also suffering mentally. I will not take to any court, and certainly not the Wimbledon centre court, unless I know I am 100 percent.”
After his shock defeat by Robin Soderling at the French Open nine days ago, Nadal said he had been advised to rest by doctors and pulled out of Queen’s in London, where he was also defending champion.
He said he would undergo physiotherapy and Spanish tennis federation (RFET) doctor Angel Ruiz Cotorro said the treatment would include anti-inflammatory drugs and intensive muscle work.
Nadal has blamed his injury problems on the overloaded tennis calendar and last year missed the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai and Spain’s Davis Cup victory over Argentina.
