Stan Wawrinka on Thursday withdrew from both of the upcoming Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami. Wawrinka missed the rest of 2017 following Wimbledon because of a knee injury and his comeback this season has been slow going through two months. The 32-year-old Swiss played at the Australian Open, in Sofia, in Rotterdam, and Marseille, faring well on none of those four occasions. He suffered losses to Tennys Sandgren, Mirza Basic, Tallon Griekspoor, and Ilya Ivashka (via retirement last week in Marseille).
In an unsurprising move, Wawrinka will skip Indian Wells and Miami and get ready for the April-May clay-court swing.
“They are both amazing events, but coming back from a big surgery after having played a few tournaments, I have discussed with my team that it is best for me to build on the progress and go back to practice,” the world No. 12 said. “I’ve enjoyed being back on tour playing matches and this gives me even more motivation to go back on the practice court. My goal is to find my highest level again and in order to do that I will keep working hard every single day.
“I need to be patient and give my body the time it needs, but as of now my goal is to come back on clay,” Wawrinka said. “I love that part of the season and hope to be ready by then. I want to thank all my fans who are always a great support. I’m working hard on and off the court and hope to be back within a few weeks.”
Novak Djokovic is not expected to be back within a few weeks, but the Serb is still holding out hope for a surprise appearance in Indian Wells. The former world No. 1, who has been plagued by an elbow injury, is currently training in Las Vegas with coach Andre Agassi. Djokovic has just now returned to the practice court for the first time since losing to Hyeon Chung in the Australian Open fourth round. Like Wawrinka, the 12-time Grand Slam champion did not play in 2017 after Wimbledon.
Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, also left Melbourne with an injury. The Spaniard’s hip problem forced him to withdraw from the 500-point event in Acapulco earlier this week.
“During my last training I noticed again a puncture in the same area that I felt in Australia,” Nadal explained. “The doctors told me it’s impossible to play; it hurts and I have no choice. I always try to [play] until the last moment, but I can’t.
“For me it’s impossible today to say something realistic about if am going to be in Indian Wells or not. My goal is to be there and I’m going to work to try to be there, but of course I can’t say yes or no now.”
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