World Number one Novak Djokovic withdrew from the Madrid Masters on Saturday according to organizers.
The organizers wrote on Instagram saying Novak Djokovic was not able to compete at the Madrid Open tournament which is slated to kick off on April 26.
Djokovic’s pullout is thought to be connected to an elbow injury he has been ailing from. This is a blow to his preparation for the French Open, which kicks off at the end of May.
The Serb, 35, was beaten straight set by compatriot Dusan Lajovic in the quarter-finals at Banja Luka in Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday.
He was also defeated by underdog Lorenzo Musetti at the Monte Carlo Masters earlier in April and claimed ahead of the Srpska Open that his elbow was “not in an ideal condition”.
Both Djokovic and Rafael Nadal’s joint record 22-time Grand Slam champions will not take part in Madrid, a major focus of the preparations for Roland Garros.
Due to his refusal to be vaccinated against Covid-19, Djokovic missed tournaments earlier this year at Indian Wells and Miami.
The two-time French Open champion said on Friday after he was beaten by world number 70 Lajovic that he was a lot of levels below what he wanted.
“Playing like that, I can’t win against opponents who are so solid on this surface. But what can I do? It’s simply a sport. I was trying but it wasn’t working. “I didn’t feel very good physically on the court. My legs were slow, I missed a lot of balls. I played well at times, but generally well below standard”, he said.
