Thursday 19 October 2017 11:28, UK
Rafael Nadal has pulled out of the Swiss Indoors tournament in Basel to rest his right knee.
The Spaniard wore tape during his defeat to Roger Federer in the Shanghai Masters last weekend but has decided, on doctor's orders, to withdraw from next week's tournament.
The world number one wrote on Facebook: "After two great weeks in China, with the title in Beijing and the final in Shanghai, it is time for some rest.
"I want to send a special message to the many tennis fans in Switzerland, which have always showed great support and respect also on my matches with Roger. Hope to see you next year."
Nadal has struggled with knee injuries for much of his career and his withdrawal could open the door for Federer to end the year in the No1 spot.
Nadal is now only 2,000 points ahead of Federer in the world rankings and there are 3,000 points available from the Basel, the Paris Masters and the ATP Finals.
Nadal's next event is now scheduled to be the final Masters tournament of the season in Paris, starting on October 30.
Sky Sports will have all the action from the Erste Bank Open and Swiss Indoors Basel before the Paris Masters.
The Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan and season-ending extravaganza World Tour Finals at London's O2 in November end another memorable year which will be covered via our website www.skysports.com/tennis with live blogs and updates as the season reaches its climax.
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