The back pain he felt in the challenger from Girona forced João Sousa to withdraw from the tournament so as not to jeopardize his participation in the Estoril Open next week, the Portuguese tennis player confirmed this Friday to the Lusa agency.
Joao Sousa was due to take part in the quarter-finals of the Catalan tournament this Friday against Spaniard Nicolas Sanchez Izquierdo, but discomfort felt in the second round of the fight, in which he eliminated fellow Spaniard Alejandro Moro Canas on Thursday, hastened his premature exit.
The tennis player himself confirmed to Lusa that his withdrawal was due to “back pain” as well as “injury precautions” reasons that have affected him in recent years, especially since he will be competing in the Estoril tournament next week Open, which is evidence that will mark the end of his career, as he announced in February.
Last year, Souza, now ranked 278th in the world rankings, was sidelined for nearly two months, from June to August, with a back injury.
The best Portuguese tennis player ever ranked in the world, and the only one to win an ATP singles title, turns 35 on Saturday but has suffered physical ailments in recent years, especially a crack in his left foot, due to with which he completed the 2019 tournament. The start of the season began, and recently systematic back problems hastened the end of Guimarães’ career.
João Sousa turned professional in 2007 and has won four ATP titles in 17 seasons on the world tennis circuit: Kuala Lumpur in 2013, Valencia in 2015, Estoril Open in 2018 and Pune in 2022.
The Guimarães native boasts several national records on his resume, including the highest ever ATP ranking for a Portuguese player (28th), the most Davis Cup caps (32), and being the only Portuguese player to have played in singles at two Olympic Games (Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020).
The former country number one and the only Portuguese tennis player to win the Estoril Open singles title spent eight consecutive years in the world top 100 (until March 2021), but his solid career was cut short by a serious left leg injury at the end. 2019.