By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Tuesday, August 1, 2023
A chronic knee injury has forced Denis Shapovalov to step out of Toronto.
The 22nd-ranked Canadian officially withdrew from his home Masters 1000, the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers, which starts on Monday.
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"I’m really disappointed to announce my withdrawal from the @nbotoronto," Shapovalov posted on Instagram. "I’ve been doing everything possible to get my knee healthy and be able to compete but unfortunately it needs more time.
"There’s no greater honor than playing at your home tournament and I will really miss playing in Toronto."
Following his fourth-round Wimbledon loss to Roman Safiullin last month, Shapovalov conceded his knee pain was "unbearable" and said if he opted to rest the knee, rather than undergo surgery, then he would likely be sidelined at least two months.
"The minimum would be two months. Yeah, I mean, hopefully no surgery. Obviously with surgery it would be much longer, but I would say the minimum would be two months," Shapovalov said at Wimbledon, adding "towards the end of the match, I couldn't even walk, let alone play."
After his Wimbledon departure, Shapovalov said if he opts for rest, he would miss the U.S. summer hard-court swing and try to comeback for the fall indoor season.
"So maybe it is a good time to take a break, try to fix this, and come back for the fall," Shapovalov said. "But then again, I would be missing an important part of the season which I love to play, which is in North America."
The Canadian left-hander joins 23-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, who withdrew last week citing fatigue, and defending champion Pablo Carreno Busta, who is continuing his recovery from an elbow injury, in withdrawing from the Canadian Masters.
Last August, a 31-year-old Carreno Busta battled back from a set down to knock off Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, to capture his maiden Masters 1000 when the tournament was held in Montreal.
It was Hurkacz's his first loss in an ATP final (5-1). Carreno Busta denied Hurkacz's bid to become the third player in Open Era history to win each of his first six ATP finals, and the first Pole to win in Canada since 1976.
The 23rd-ranked Carreno Busta also withdrew from Cincinnati.
Photo credit: Rob Newell