Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur has been forced to withdraw from the Olympic men’s singles tournament due to injury.
The world No.6 is still battling the same hip complaint that ended his Wimbledon campaign in the fourth round earlier this month.
The Australian Olympic Team confirmed on Sunday that despite his omission from the singles, he will still play doubles alongside Alexei Popyrin.
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Until then, it was thought de Minaur had shaken off the hip injury that scuppered his Wimbledon golden run.
The 25-year-old appeared almost certain to miss the Olympics after suffering the hip cartilage tear in the dying moments of his Wimbledon round-of-16 win over Arthur Fils.
On July 10, he withdrew from his quarter-final against Novak Djokovic and had flagged the injury would sideline him for 3-6 weeks, almost certainly ruling him out of Paris, given the 17-day turnaround to the start of the tournament.
And while he will make it back in time for an Olympics debut, it will be in doubles only.
Heartbreakingly, De Minaur was also forced out of the Tokyo Games at the last minute in 2021 after contracting COVID-19.
Earlier this week, de Minaur had assured fans we would play in Paris.
“To finally be able to represent Australia in the Olympics is a dream come true,” he said on Tuesday.
“I’m very passionate when I play for my country and wear the green and gold, so this is another one of those moments.
“I’m extremely excited to lace up for Paris 2024.”
Australian chef de mission Anna Meares said it was encouraging that de Minaur would join the team in Paris, but cautioned that he was still managing the injury.
“It’s really great news — we’re actually expecting Alex to arrive in the village ahead of the official draw (on Thursday) and we know he’s been working with his rehab team quite extensively since the conclusion of Wimbledon,” she said.
“He’s hungry to be here, he wants to be a part of this team and we will offer as much support as we can in that process.
“He’s coming — we will wait to see that process. He still has time … injury can be a really stressful thing for an athlete and the more you rush it, the more problems you can potentially cause.
“We’re leaving it in the hands of Alex and his rehabilitation team … it will be a decision purely by them.”
De Minaur also shared a post from the Australian Olympic Team, which included a photo of the tennis team members, to his Instagram story.
“Excited to meet the team!! See you soon @ausolympicteam,” he wrote in the caption.
When informed de Minaur had said he would play, teammate Ajla Tomljanovic said: “Of course he is — he’s Demon. He’ll never miss an opportunity to put the green and gold on.”
De Minaur and Tomljanovic lead a team that includes Alexei Popyrin, Daria Saville, Rinky Hijikata, Ellen Perez, Matthew Ebden, John Peers and Olivia Gadecki.
The Olympic tennis event will be held at Roland Garros from July 27 until August 4.
De Minaur had backed himself to succeed on clay in Paris after reaching the quarter-finals at the French Open.
“In a way, I kind of surprised myself at Roland Garros. I showed that I’m perfectly capable (on this surface),” said de Minaur in June.
– With AAP