World No.20 David Goffin is the latest to join the list of top players who have withdrawn from the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. The Belgian had suffered an ankle injury at the Halle Open last month which also forced him to pull out of the 2021 Wimbledon Championships.

During his first-round match against Corentin Moutet in Halle, Goffin slipped on a split step and strained his ankle badly. Reeling under grimacing pain, he withdrew from the match and subsequently from Wimbledon.

David Goffin pulls out of Tokyo Olympics

However, Goffin’s withdrawal from the Olympics, which starts in less than two weeks, is an enormous blow for the Belgium tennis contingent.

In a statement, the 30-year-old mentioned he certainly planned to compete at the quadrennial international event, however, the time window to recover from the injury was insufficient.

“I was determined to go there on a site where I had good results and because it’s the Games! But the time for a total revalidation was way too short. Looking forward a great end of season,” said Goffin.

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Having turned professional in 2009, Goffin has participated in the previous two Olympics Games. At the 2012 London Games, he lost in the first round of the men’s singles to Juan Monaco whereas, at the 2016 Rio Games, he defeated Sam Groth and Dudi Sela before unexpectedly losing to Thomaz Bellucci in the third round.

Over the last few weeks, many top-ranked players including Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem, Stan Wawrinka, Serena Williams, and Simona Halep have announced their decisions to skip the pandemic-delayed Olympics.

Australian tennis player, Nick Kyrgios, has also pulled out of the Tokyo Olympics, saying playing without spectators “doesn’t feel right”. His decision came just hours before Olympics organizers banned all crowds from the Games owning to the ongoing state of emergency because of coronavirus pandemic.

Thus, a combination of factors has resulted in the Olympics field becoming lackluster. However, it would boost the chances of lower-ranked players to secure the coveted Olympic medal.