Former US Open champion Juan Martin del Potro has pulled out of this weekends inaugural Laver Cup in Prague.
The Argentine was set to play in the six-player world team, which is captained by former world No.1 John McEnroe. Del Potro’s decision to withdraw is due to not being ‘completely healthy.’ A comment he made without elaborating further. Earlier this month at the US Open he defeated Roger Federer to reach the semifinals. His best performance in a grand slam since the 2013 Wimbledon Championships.
“It is with much sadness I will not be able to compete in the first Laver Cup, but unfortunately I am not completely healthy.” Del Potro said in a statement.
“It was an honor to be selected to participate in this event and I am sure it will be a great success.”
There are few details surrounding the severity of the issue and if it will impact on Del Potro’s future plans. His next tournament is scheduled to be the Shanghai Masters, which will start in the second week of October.
Replacing Del Potro in the Laver Cup will be America’s Frances Tiafoe. So far this season the 19-year-old has won two Challenger titles and scored his first win over a top 10 player against Alexander Zverev in Washington. He is currently ranked 72nd in the world, 12 places before his career high.
Named after the infamous Rod Laver, the Laver Cup will feature team Europe against the rest of the world. Joining Tiafoe in the world group will be Jack Sock, Nick Kyrgios, John Isner, Sam Querrey and Denis Shapovalov. Team Europe will be headlined by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal as well as Marin Cilic, Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev and Tomas Berdych.
The inaugural three-day tournament will start on Friday. A total of 12 matches is set to take place with the full order of play to be outlined on Thursday.
