Nadal to miss Barcelona Open as fitness issues persist

Spaniard has not fully recovered from hip injury he suffered at Australian Open

Spain's Rafael Nadal suffered another injury at the Australian Open earlier in the year. Reuters

Rafael Nadal's preparation for the French Open suffered another blow when he announced his withdrawal from the ATP Barcelona tournament on Friday.

Nadal will miss next week's Barcelona Open and continue building his match fitness following a hip injury sustained at the Australian Open in January.

The 22-times Grand Slam champion skipped tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami as well as the ongoing Monte Carlo Masters after suffering the injury that effectively ended his Melbourne Park title defence as he crashed to a second-round defeat by Mackenzie McDonald.

"Barcelona is a special tournament for me, because it's my adopted club and playing at home is always a unique sensation," Nadal, 36, said on Instagram.

"I'm still not ready and therefore I continue my preparation process for the return to competition."

The Spaniard, a 14-times French Open champion, hopes to be fully fit for the clay court Grand Slam starting in May.

His fitness problems have become a recurring issue since he won his 14th French Open crown last year.

He subsequently withdrew from his Wimbledon semi-final due to an abdominal injury.

Nadal's long absence from the circuit this term has seen him drop out of the top 10 for the first time since April 2005 - he is presently ranked 15th.