Roger Federer will play no part in this month's French Open after citing a back injury for his withdrawal from the tournament.
"I regret to announce that I have made the decision not to play in this year’s French Open,” he wrote in a statement on his Facebook page. "I have been making steady progress with my overall fitness, but I am still not 100% and feel I might be taking an unnecessary risk by playing in this event before I am really ready.
“This decision was not easy to make, but I took it to ensure I could play the remainder of the season and help to extend the rest of my career. I remain as motivated and excited as ever and my plan is to achieve the highest level of fitness before returning to the ATP World Tour for the upcoming grass court season. I am sorry for my fans in Paris but I very much look forward to returning to Roland Garros in 2017."
The tournament, which begins on Sunday, would have been his 66th consecutive Grand Slam event.
The Swiss briefly jumped ahead of Andy Murray in the world rankings last week - before the British number one's Italian Open win returned him to second spot, behind Novak Djokovic.
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
