Pity! The absence of the five major players at the French Open this year is a collective loss for the fans
This year's French Open will be the first tournament without Nadal since 2004. Last week, the Spaniard announced at a press conference that he has not recovered from the Australian Open injury. Nadal's ATP ranking will fall out of the top 100 for the first time since April 2003 due to his absence from this year's Roland Garros.
Nadal is not the only player to skip this year's French Open. Five well-known stars will also miss this year's French Open due to injuries or other reasons. Today let's take a look at five big-name players who will miss the 2023 French Open.
1. Nadal
Nadal is the top player on this year's Roland Garros absentee list, as he has yet to return from injury. The Spaniard suffered a hip injury while playing at the Australian Open and was initially expected to take six to eight weeks to recover. However, things did not go according to his plan and, as a result, he will not be able to defend his title in Paris, making it the first time Nadal will miss the French Open since 2004.
The clay king said he will continue to take some time off in order to return at his best for the 2024 season, which could be his final season next year. Countless fans are very sad that Nadal cannot be seen at the French Open this year. Everyone hopes that next year will see him not return to the French Open for the last time.
2. Radukanu
Former US Open champion Radukanu will also miss this year's Roland Garros as she recovers from hand and ankle surgery.
The Briton has been plagued by numerous injury issues over the past 10 months and has decided to withdraw from the Madrid Open in order to undergo surgery. She said that she will be away from the game in the next few months, which also means that she will not be able to participate in the French Open and Wimbledon. After Radukanu withdrew from the Madrid Open, her ranking has dropped out of the top 100. Since she hasn't played for a long time, her ranking will drop further.
3. Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka, who is currently awaiting the birth of her first child, has been away from tennis for quite some time. Naomi Osaka announced she was pregnant shortly after she withdrew from the Australian Open in January.
The former world No. 1 has not played a match since last season's Tokyo Open. She participated in last year's French Open and lost to Anisimova 5-7 4-6 in the first round. Her best record at the French Open so far has been reaching the third round in 2016, 2018 and 2019.
4. Halep
Halep has produced some remarkable results at the French Open, where she won the French Open title in 2018 and reached the French Open finals in 2014 and 2017. However, the Romanian will not be able to compete in this season's clay-court Grand Slams, as she remains suspended after failing a drug test at last year's US Open.
Halep hasn't played a game since last year's first-round upset at the US Open. The Romanian recently said she hopes to get a timely trial. "I don't think it's fair to spend eight months without a trial. It's not an easy period. I'm not asking for special treatment. I'm just asking for a trial. How long will it take?"
5. Kyrgios
Kyrgios has had really bad luck this year. His mother's car was stolen earlier this month, while he also injured his left foot, so the Australian will not be able to compete at the French Open. Kyrgios has yet to play a game this season due to a knee injury. According to the progress of the recovery, he is close to comeback, however, the foot injury forced him to postpone the time of comeback.
His agent, Daniel Horsfall, said: "All the bad things happened. Nick got scratched on his left foot. We don't know how it happened. We planned to come back in the Grand Slam tournament, but Now it's about two-and-a-half weeks later."
