Injured Wawrinka to miss US Open title defence
4 Aug 2017 4:50 PM GMT
Reigning US Open champion Stan Wawrinka will miss his title defence to have knee surgery and will sit out the rest of the year, the world number four announced
on Friday.
The three-time Grand Slam champion had already pulled out of the upcoming ATP tournaments in Montreal and Cincinnati, and joins last year's US Open runner-up Novak Djokovic on the sidelines for the remainder of 2017.
"This was the only solution to make sure I will be able to compete at the top level for many more years," Wawrinka said in a statement on Facebook.
"This is obviously extremely disappointing, but I'm already looking ahead and planning my recovery.
"I love this sport and I will work hard to get back to my top level and play many more years. I will see you all in 2018!" The 32-year-old Wawrinka, like Djokovic, will be hoping the time off can help him come back revitalised after a difficult month that included a first-round exit at Wimbledon. On Thursday, Wawrinka admitted that the knee injury had hampered him during that shock defeat to unseeded Russian Daniil Medvedev in London. The four-set victory over Djokovic in the final at Flushing Meadows last year gave Wawrinka his third major crown, taking him level with current world number one Andy Murray, who has been struggling with a hip injury and hasn't played since Wimbledon.
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