Spanish tennis great Rafael Nadal on Thursday pulled out of the Madrid Masters later this month after failing to recover from a hip injury.
This is a major blow to Nadal’s French Open, which begins on May 28, preparations.
"For the moment I've missed Monte Carlo and Barcelona. And unfortunately I won't be able to be in Madrid either," Nadal said on Instagram.
"The injury still hasn't healed," he added.
The 36-year-old Spaniard has been out of action since losing in the second round of the Australian Open in January.
Nadal eyes a record-extending 15th French Open title but the hip flexor issue he suffered in Melbourne has severely affected his campaign ahead of the tournament.
The 22-time Grand Slam singles champion — he shares the men's record with Novak Djokovic — had originally thought he would miss tennis for up to two months.
He missed the hard-court tournaments at Indian Wells and Miami and was keen on making a return at the start of the clay season but that could not happen.
"In principle it was supposed to be a recovery period of six to eight weeks and now we're around 14," added Nadal.
"The reality is that the situation is not what we would have hoped for. All medical indications have been followed, but the healing has not gone as they told us initially."
Nadal said he and his team will also opt for a different treatment in order to improve things but a deadline for his comeback is still uncertain.
His fitness problems have been a recurring issue since he won his 14th French Open title last year.
At Wimbledon last summer, an abdominal injury forced him to withdrew during the semi-final.