Clay court maestro Rafael Nadal faces more than a month on the sidelines after a rib injury ruled him out of next month's Monte Carlo Masters and the Barcelona Open.
The 35-year-old Spaniard, who has won the titles in Monte Carlo and Barcelona 11 and 12 times respectively, could also be forced to sit out the Madrid Open at the start of May after tests revealed a stress fracture in his rib.
"This is not good news and I did not expect this," said Nadal on Tuesday.
The injury flared up towards the end of his three-hour semi-final against Carlos Alcarez on Saturday at the Indian Wells Masters in California.
He received treatment on his chest before completing his 20th straight victory of the season.
But he succumbed in the final on Sunday to the big-hitting American Taylor Fritz.
After the defeat, Nadal praised his conqueror and also admitted that he had felt pain in his chest and was occasionally dizzy during the final.
“I am down and sad because after the start of the season I have had such a good time," he added.
"I reached a very important part of the year with very good feelings and good results."
Success
Nadal has claimed 62 of his 91 crowns on clay courts. Thirteen of the titles have been at the French Open in Paris - the second Grand Slam tournament of the season.
If he were to miss the Madrid Masters, he would only have the Rome Masters to prepare for his assault on a record-extending 14th French Open singles title.
“I’ve always had that fighting spirit and what I will do is be patient and work hard after my recovery," said Nadal.
Having feared for his career because of a foot injury at the tail end of 2021, Nadal wrote his name into the record books at the Australian Open in Melbourne by eclipsing Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic to become the first man to win a 21st Grand Slam title.
He battled from two sets down to see off the second seed Daniil Medvedev.
