Former world No.1 Rafael Nadal has ended his season in a bid to fully recover from the left wrist injury that has plagued him this year.
In a statement, the Spanish 14-times major champion said he would play no more tournaments and would instead begin “preparing intensively” for the 2017 season.
The 30-year-old left-hander was forced to pull out of the French Open before his third-round match and also missed Wimbledon because of the injury although he returned to compete at the Rio Olympics where he won a doubles gold medal with Marc Lopez.
“It is no secret that I arrived to the Olympic Games short of preparation and not fully recovered, but the goal was to compete and win a medal for Spain,” Nadal said.
“This forced recovery has caused me pain since then and now I am forced to stop and start preparing the 2017 season.”
Nadal, currently ranked sixth in the world, was expected to qualify for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London.
He joins Roger Federer and Serena Williams as superstars who have terminated their 2016 seasons prematurely.
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