Rafael Nadal Withdraws from US Open as Nagging Foot Injury Forces Him to End 2021 Season

Rafael Nadal will miss the final tennis grand slam of the year.

The tennis star, 35, announced on Friday that he will not be participating in this month's US Open tournament, which is set to begin on Aug. 30. In a video shared on social media, Nadal told fans and followers that he would also be ending the rest of this year's season.

"I am very sorry to announce that I will not be able to keep playing tennis during the 2021 season," said Nadal, who missed Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics after losing to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinals.

"But as you know, I have been suffering too much with my foot for the last year now. I missed a lot of important events for me like the U.S. Open now, like Wimbledon, Olympics and many other events that are so important and emotional for me," Rafa explained.

Sixteen years ago, Nadal suffered a foot injury in the thrilling 2005 Madrid Open final, which was his first indoor title. He had to skip the rest of that season, including his Masters Cup debut, and later returned to the court in February 2006 after missing the Australian Open.

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"I am confident I will recover myself and fight again for the most important things," the Spanish athlete said in his video Friday. "During the last year, I was not able to practice and prepare the way I need to be competitive at the standards I want to be."

The star added, "The injury is nothing new. It is the same injury I am having since 2005. In that moment the doctors were very negative about my future career, but honestly, I was able to have a career I was unable to even dream about, so I am confident I will recover again."

Nadal went on to assure his fans that he will focus on his recovery so that he can return to tennis.

"If my foot is better, I'm confident that my tennis and mentality will be there again soon. I'm going to fight every single day to make that happen," he said. "I will be back the right way."

In his caption, Nadal wrote, "2021 season I promise you that I will work hard to try to continue to enjoy this sport for some more time! Big hug to all!"