Rafael Nadal expected to be out for five more months following hip surgery
The 22-time Grand Slam champion is almost certainly out for the rest of the season
afael Nadal is expected to be out for five more months following the surgery on his left hip that kept him out of the French Open.
The 36-year-old Spaniard underwent a procedure in Barcelona on Friday.
Nadal suffered the injury at the Australian Open in January and had expected to only be out for six to eight weeks.
This latest timescale means the 22-time Grand Slam champion is almost certainly out for the rest of the season but he could potentially make his return in Australia in January.
Nadal, who has said he plans to retire after the 2024 season, tweeted: “Everything went well and the arthroscopy was on the left psoas tendon that has kept me out of competition since January.
“An old injury to the labrum of my left hip was also regularised, which will surely help the better evolution of the tendon.
“I will start progressive functional rehabilitation immediately and the normal recovery process they tell me is five months, if all goes well.”
Additional reporting: Press Association