Australian Open semi-finalist Karen Khachanov won't play at Wimbledon after pulling out of the event a good week before it was set to begin.
Khachanov has been a very steady performer throughout his career but there has been a lack of big trophies. His biggest one came at the Paris Masters a few years ago where he defeated Novak Djokovic in the final. It's been a few years since then and Khachanov is back to playing on a similar level however recently, it was Djokovic who won their match at the French Open.
This year has been the best in years with several notable results including the Australian Open semi-final which he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas. The Russian is yet to contest a final this year but he came close a few times with plenty of quarter-finals as well.
Wimbledon has been traditionally a very good event for him with a few notable runs including a quarter-final in 2021. He missed the event last year unfortunately and he'll miss the event this year again. The withdrawal came suddenly and surprised many even though his pullout from Halle this week left many wondering about his status.
The grass season is notoriously tricky to navigate and there are more than a few injuries every year with more than a few late pullouts from Wimbledon as well. He's one of the better grass players on the ATP Tour generally ranking 9th in most wins of players born in 1990 or later (23 wins on grass).
Soon after the withdrawal, the Russian provide a statement in which he explained his reasons, while also stating that he's really devastated by the fact that he was forced to withdraw from the tournament.
"This is not an easy statement for me to write, but I have to inform you of my withdrawal from the upcoming Championships at Wimbledon. Due to an unfortunate injury I picked up at the French Open (stress fracture and a partial fracture in sacrum S1 bone), I will not be able to participate at Wimbledon for the second year in a row."
"The decision to withdraw was not an easy one and i was hopping till the end during these few weeks that I would be able to recover however my medical team ensured me that in my case it wasn’t possible. As difficult as this is, I will now focus on my recovery, working diligently to get healthy and come back to tournaments in August."
"Meanwhile I am happy that I have my family by my side and grateful that I can be present for the birth of my second son who we are expecting really soon. I remain committed and will use this setback as motivation to come back and hopefully keep achieving as I wish to do. Thank you for your understanding and your continued support, it means a lot to me."
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