Juan Martin del Potro to miss Australian Open 2019 after knee injury
New Delhi: Argentine tennis player Juan Martin del Potro will not be participating in the upcoming 2019 Australian Open due to a fractured patella.
The 30-year-old has sustained the injury during the 2018 Shanghai Masters tournament when he fell on his right knee while taking on Borna Coric of Croatia in the third round of the competition. He is still recovering from the injury.
The confirmation regarding his unavailability for the first major Grand Slam of the year was made by the tennis player himself on his Twitter handle.
"I hope you have a great 2019. Recovery is going great and I will tell you later where I will be making my comeback. Unfortunately, it won't happen in Australia, I'll miss you @AustralianOpen, but I'm happy with my progress. Happy New Year! Enjoy!" he wrote.
I hope you have a great 2019. Recovery is going great and I will tell you later where I will be making my comeback. Unfortunately it won’t happen in Australia, I’ll miss you @AustralianOpen, but I’m happy with my progress ☺ï¸
— Juan M. del Potro (@delpotrojuan) December 31, 2018
Happy New Year! Enjoy! 🥂ðŸ¾
Last year, Del Potro had gone till the third round of the tournament where he was defeated by Tomas Berdych of Czech Republic.
The 2019 Australian Open is slated to be held from January 14 to 27 in Melbourne, Australia.