Juan Martin del Potro has pulled out of the Australian Open due to the surgery to his right patella that he underwent after re-injuring the knee in London last summer.
The 2009 US Open champion is apparently close to returning to the tour, but opted out of travelling to Melbourne this year. Del Potro slipped and injured the knee at Queen’s Club last June while playing against Denis Shapovalov, re-aggravating the injury that he initially suffered in 2018.