WIMBLEDON, England — Rafael Nadal figured he couldn’t win Wimbledon this year because of his achy knees, so he decided it didn’t make sense to try.
Nadal withdrew from the grass-court Grand Slam tournament Friday, three days before it begins, becoming only the second men’s champion in 35 years to decline to defend his Wimbledon title.
“When I start a tournament like Wimbledon, it is to try to win,” the No. 1-ranked Nadal said, “and my feeling right now is I’m not ready to play to win.”
Nadal announced his withdrawal about 2 1/2 hours after losing to 18th-ranked Stanislas Wawrinka in an exhibition match on grass at Hurlingham Club in south London.
“Today was the last test. I didn’t feel terrible, but not close to my best,” said Nadal, who also lost an exhibition match against 2002 Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt on Thursday. “I’m just not 100 percent. I’m better than I was a couple of weeks ago, but I just don’t feel ready.”
Nadal called it “one of the toughest decisions of my career,” but he also added: “There’s no option. I don’t feel ready to compete 100 percent for two weeks.”
He is the first reigning Wimbledon men’s champion to pull out of the following year’s tournament since Goran Ivanisevic in 2002. Otherwise, it hadn’t happened since 1973, when Stan Smith opted not to defend his Wimbledon title because of an ATP boycott of the tournament.
Nadal’s exit opens the door for Roger Federer to reclaim the No. 1 ranking, a spot he held for a record 237 consecutive weeks until Nadal pushed him to No. 2 in August. Federer is 7-13 against Nadal.
By pulling out after Friday morning’s draw, Nadal forced organizers to shuffle the men’s bracket. No. 5-seeded Juan Martin del Potro was moved from a potential semifinal against No. 2 Federer on the bottom half of the field into Nadal’s old spot in the top half. And No. 17 James Blake switched from the top half to the bottom half in del Potro’s old spot — and into a possible semifinal against Federer.
It also means No. 6 Andy Roddick, a two-time Wimbledon runner-up, could face del Potro — rather than Nadal — in the quarterfinals. The other potential men’s quarterfinals are Federer vs. No. 7 Fernando Verdasco; No. 3 Andy Murray vs. No. 7 Gilles Simon; and Blake vs. No. 4 Novak Djokovic.
