America’s three-time Wimbledon finalist Andy Roddick is a doubt for the French Open after he was forced to withdraw from the ATP tournament in Nice on Tuesday because of a shoulder injury. Williams sisters, Serena and Venus, have already announced they would miss the event. The 28-year-old had been hoping to get a much-needed confidence boost after first-round exits on clay at both the Madrid and Rome Masters, but he conceded defeat and decided he would not be able to play his singles match on Wednesday against Romanian Victor Hanescu.
“I was already injured last week in Rome and I had to withdraw from the men’s doubles final,” said Roddick, whose best performance at Roland Garros was a fourth-round showing in 2009. “I don’t know yet if I will be able to play at Roland Garros and I think that you can’t play a Grand Slam if you’re not 100 percent,” added Roddick, who is presently ranked 11th in the world.
Roddick said that he did not want to risk aggravating the injury to such an extent that he might miss Wimbledon on his more favoured surface of grass. “It is painful more when I am hitting backhands and forehands than when I am serving, and there is little bit of tendinitis,” said Roddick. “I want to avoid spending months out injured. It has not been a very good year so far.”
Del Potro set to play: Argentina’s Juan Martin Del Potro has confirmed he will play in the French Open starting on Sunday having previously said he was unlikely to take part due to a hip injury. The 2009 US Open champion picked up the injury while playing in the Madrid Masters earlier this month and he promptly returned to Argentina for treatment. “With a lot of effort we got there. We are on our way to Paris,” Del Potro said on his Twitter feed.
The hip injury came just as Del Potro was getting back to top form having been sidelined for months with a serious wrist injury that threatened his career. Del Potro, who can expect to receive the 26th seeding at Roland Garros, reached the semi-finals of the French Open in 2009 before losing in five sets to eventual winner Roger Federer.
