Rafael Nadal still unable to train with a racket, will miss Barcelona

Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts after a point lost to Taylor Fritz of the US in their ATP Men’s Final at the Indian Wells tennis tournament on March 20, 2022 in Indian Wells, California. (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP)

Rafael Nadal has not yet been able to resume training with a racket, said one of his team said on Tuesday, adding that the world No. 4 will “logically” miss the Barcelona tournament next week.

“He is still suffering from his ribs and as expected when his injury was announced, he needs four to six weeks. We are at three, so logically he will not be able to play again in Barcelona,” a person close to Nadal told AFP.

“He does the gym, but nothing that hurts him and therefore obviously not with the racket.”

After Nadal went down to his first loss of the year to Taylor Fritz in the Indian Wells final, the 35-year-old Spaniard said he had suffered a stress fracture of a rib in the semifinal against 18-year-old compatriot Carlos Alcaraz.

He has already missed the Miami Masters on hard court and Monte Carlo, which opens the European clay court season.

The next Masters events are Madrid starting on May 1 and then Rome beginning on May 8. The French Open begins on May 22. Nadal has won the title at Roland Garros 13 times.