Rafael Nadal pulls out of Wimbledon and Olympics

Rafael Nadal said Thursday he was withdrawing from Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics in a bid “to prolong my career”.

The 35-year-old, who won the second of his two titles at the All England Club in 2010 and landed the Olympic singles title in 2008, revealed his decision on his Twitter feed.

“I have decided not to participate at this year’s Championships at Wimbledon and the Olympic Games in Tokyo,” he tweeted. “It’s never an easy decision to take but after listening to my body and discuss(ing) it with my team I understand that it is the right decision.”

Hi all, I have decided not to participate at this year’s Championships at Wimbledon and the Olympic Games in Tokyo. It’s never an easy decision to take but after listening to my body and discuss it with my team I understand that it is the right decision

— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) June 17, 2021

The 20-time Grand Slam champion was last week beaten in the semi-finals of the French Open by Novak Djokovic.

“The goal is to prolong my career and continue to do what makes me happy, that is to compete at the highest level and keep fighting for those professional and personal goals at the maximum level of competition,” added Nadal.