Defending Champion Rafael Nadal Withdraws at Rogers Cup 2014 Due to Wrist Injury

Rafael Nadal will not be able to defend his title at the upcoming Rogers Cup in Toronto next week.

Last Tuesday, the world no. 2 withdrew from the tournament as well as the upcoming tournament in Cincinnati and one more key U.S. Open prep event.

Nadal's pull out to the tournament is due to the right wrist injury he had during practice. His wrist needs to be immobilised in cast, which will make him miss two events.

According to a recent statement, Nadal said that he would be out for least two to three weeks and the defending U.S. Open champion puts the defence in doubt due to his injury.

"I'm extremely disappointed that I am unable to defend my Rogers Cup title this year," the Spaniard said via Tennis Canada. "I was looking forward to coming there and playing again in Toronto as I have always loved to play in Canada and had great results in the past at a very important event."

Although left-handed, the tennis superstar uses a two-handed backhand. He uses his right hand for his backhand and to toss the ball for his serves.

Wrist injuries are common in professional tennis, which can affect both the dominant and non-dominant hand.

"Even if somebody is using a two-handed backhand, there still a dominance of one hand during the swing," Dr. Richard Berger, an orthopaedic surgeon at the Mayo Clinic who specialises in operations said in a statement via NY Times.

Rafael Nadal's 2013 title at Flushing Meadows in one of his 14 Grand Slams, which tied him in the second place in men's tennis history with Pete Sampras behind Roger Federer's 17 Grand Slams.

Projected to the no. 2 seed in Toronto, last year's Rogers Cup title holder in Montreal was set to arrive in town for Friday's draw. The Rogers Cup begins on Monday.