Friday 4 October 2019 09:34, UK
Rafael Nadal has been forced to withdraw from the Shanghai Masters due to a wrist injury.
The Spaniard was plagued by the injury during the latter stages of the recent Laver Cup and he was unable to compete in his second singles match in Geneva.
The eighth ATP Masters 1000 event of the season - which begins on Sunday, was set to feature 'The Big Four' of Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Andy Murray for the first time since January's Australian Open.
However, Nadal's wait for a maiden Shanghai title will now continue.
"I am very sad to announce that I won't be able to play in Shanghai this year. It is the second year in a row and in China I have great fans," Nadal said in a statement.
"But, as you all probably know, I had an inflammation on my left wrist during the Laver Cup and I haven't had the time to recover and practice to be ready. I hope to be back in Shanghai for the 2020 tournament."
The 19-time Grand Slam champion is currently on an 11-game winning streak, which featured his dramatic US Open triumph against Daniil Medvedev last month.
Nadal has lost just one of his last 29 matches, a run that also included his 12th French Open title at Roland Garros and Masters titles in Montreal and Rome.
Nevertheless, his absence will give defending Shanghai champion Djokovic the opportunity to close the gap on the 33-year-old in the battle to finish year-end world No 1.
The Serbian trailed Nadal by 1,960 points in the ATP Race to London coming into this week, but Djokovic could earn 500 points if he triumphs in Tokyo this weekend and an additional 1,000 points if he retains his Shanghai crown.
