The Mutua Madrid Open, which is the second Masters 1000 tournament on clay, is all set to start with top players from both the ATP and WTA tours looking forward to making their mark in this prestigious event. 

Even though a lot of top players are leading the race at the upcoming Mutua Madrid Open, there are a few players who are all set to miss out on the action. Roger Federer, Serena Williams, and Novak Djokovic are amongst the notable names to skip the Madrid Open this year. 

List of players who won’t be seen at the Mutua Madrid Open

Roger Federer

After having two knee surgeries last year, Roger Federer wouldn’t have found a better time to rest his knees as the ATP tour halted last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Amidst a lot of uncertainty, the Swiss Maestro made his comeback at the Qatar Open to check his match fitness. The Swiss Maestro lost in three sets to Nikoloz Basilashvili 3-6,6-1,7-5. 

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Federer immediately went into training after the defeat and mentioned that his target was to become fit for the Wimbledon Championships and the Tokyo Olympics. 

The twenty-time Grand Slam champion decided to spend more time on training and will play at an ATP 250 clay-court tournament on his home soil in Geneva, before heading to Roland Garros. Therefore, he will miss both the Masters at Madrid and Rome. 

Novak Djokovic 

The Serbian world number one was eager to play the Mutua Madrid Open but changed his mind after the semi-final loss to Aslan Karatsev at the Serbia Open. 

Djokovic’s results on clay this year don’t indicate the type of player he usually is on the red turf. The current world number one is most likely to play yet another clay-court tournament in Belgrade, ahead of the French Open. 

If he decides to play the home tournament, it will be interesting to see how he performs in Paris as the French Open starts immediately after the Belgrade event with a day’s gap. But the Serb will participate in the Internazionali BNL D’Italia tournament that starts soon after Madrid Masters. 

Defending Champion Novak Djokovic Skips Mutua Madrid Open, Prioritizes Hometown Event Ahead of the French Open 2021

Serena Williams

Having started her preparations on clay for the French Open, the American legend probably decided to skip the Madrid Masters after the tournament director Ion Tiriac took a dig at Serena in an interview, asking her to retire from the sport. 

Like Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams will participate in the Italian Open; this will be her first clay-court tournament this year. 

The American wants to win her 24th Grand Slam title, and she looks forward to achieving this incredible feat at the French Open this year. Also, several young players have defeated her on various surfaces, and she will have to be at her best in every match to have any chance of winning the title. 

Stan Wawrinka 

One of the most exciting players to watch on tour, Stan Wawrinka has been grappling with back-to-back injuries over the past few years.  

In a brutal five-set semi-final encounter against Andy Murray at the 2017 French Open, the Swiss player injured his left knee. Both the players poured their hearts out in the match as the match nearly destroyed their careers. 

Even though Wawrinka made a decent comeback in 2019, he still finds it hard to dig deep at Grand Slams. He recently had a minor surgery for an injury on the left foot and decided to opt out of the Madrid and Rome Masters.

Wawrinka is yet to play a clay-court tournament this year. 

Gael Monfils

Monfils is yet another player whose performances get marred by injuries more often than not. But his risky style of tennis doesn’t give him the necessary guarantee to win a tournament. 

He recently pulled out of the Monte-Carlo Masters with a calf injury and will not play the Mutua Madrid Open owing to the same. The Frenchman is yet to decide on his participation at the Italian Open. 

David Goffin

Belgian David Goffin is the latest to withdraw from the Madrid Open after an adductor injury during his third-round match against Cameron Norrie at the Barcelona Open last week. 

Marin Cilic

Having reached the semi-finals at the on-going Estoril Open, Marin Cilic informed his decision to back out of the Mutua Madrid Open following its proximity to Estoril in terms of scheduling.

The Croatian player will play the Rome Masters and Geneva Open before heading into Paris.

Borna Coric 

The Croatian has been dealing with multiple injuries after a great start to his career. He is a clay-court specialist, and it’s unfortunate to see him missing out on all the action on the red dirt. 

Coric is currently dealing with a shoulder injury; he will miss the Madrid Open and is yet to provide an update on his participation at the Internazionali BNL D’Italia 

Milos Raonic

Milos Raonic’s name rarely comes into the discussion on clay, and the Canadian might opt out of the entire clay-court season to focus more on grass and hard-court tournaments, which are his strengths. He is yet to provide an update on his French Open participation. 

Lorenzo Sonego

The young Italian tennis player, who is yet to make it big on the ATP tour has to withdraw from Madrid Masters after bone detachment to the ring finger of his left hand., caused by accidentally slamming the door.

Sonego was due to play at the ATP 250 tournament in Munich before the accident. He will now compete in Rome Masters, followed by the French Open.

Richard Gasquet

The veteran French player is hoping for a successful run on clay as he inching closer to his retirement. Having recently played at the Estoril Open, Gasquet retired from his second round match against Cristian Garin due to a right abductor injury.

He previously opted out of Monte-Carlo Masters citing complications related to COVID-19.

Gasquet’s name is not on the entry list for the Mutua Madrid Open and he might aim for a comeback at Rome before playing in front of his home crowd in Paris.

Bianca Andreescu

After a glorious start to her career with a victory over Serena Williams to clinch her maiden Grand Slam tournament, Bianca Andreescu has had a difficult ride since then. 

She didn’t play much last year due to a knee injury and retired against Ash Barty in the Miami Open finals this year, citing a foot injury. 

Even though the foot injury was minor and the Canadian recovered quickly, she was tested positive for COVID-19 upon arriving in Madrid. She announced her withdrawal from Madrid Open and will play at the Italian Open in the second week of May. 

Sofia Kenin

Kenin, the American tennis player, stunned the tennis world by winning the Australian Open last year. She also reached the 2020 French Open final and was awarded the “WTA Player of the Tour” for her incredible achievements. 

However, this year was brutal for the young American as she failed to defend her Australian Open crown and is struggling to find top form ever since. 

She had an acute appendicitis surgery in February, disrupting her plans to make a solid comeback. The American struggled to find form at the Stuttgart Open as well and lost to Anett Kontaveit in the third round. Kenin opted out of the Mutua Madrid Open; she might choose to play the Rome Masters. 

In addition to the above, players like Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will also be missing the action at the Mutua Madrid Open this year. 

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