World number one Rafael Nadal will not be defending his Wimbledon title this year over concerns about a knee injury.
Nadal withdrew from the tournament at Queen’s Club the other week, a recognised warm-up tournament for Wimbledon, also on the grounds of fitness and knee injuries. He did play a couple of exhibition matches, against Lleyton Hewitt and Stanislas Wawrinka, to gauge his fitness and then made the decision to withdraw from Wimbledon.
Although Nadal does not see his persistent knee problems as chronic or career-threatening, he has been diagnosed with tendinitis in both quadriceps tendons as well as a small amount of fluid on the kneecaps.