Tennis News: Rafael Nadal raises injury concern ahead of US Open 

However, before the commencement of the Cincinnati Masters, Nadal rolled out an update about his injury. He had walked out of the Wimbledon semi-final due to a reported 7mm abdominal tear.

After a brief recovery period, the Spaniard was ready to compete in the Montreal event. Still, on the eve of the contest, Nadal backed out due to discomfort in his abdominal region.

Within a week of that announcement, Nadal confirmed his participation in the Western & Southern Open, an event he hadn't played in five years. 

Unfortunately, the Spaniard stated that the injury could be risky with the US Open just two weeks away. 

Nadal stressed the importance of being healthy, affecting his participation in upcoming tournaments. So he has to be picky about where he chooses to compete. 

The Spaniard's injury curtails him from putting pressure on the abdomen, so he is unable to serve with ease. He is intentionally trying to play as few events as possible, hoping to reserve more time for recovery. 

Nadal won the Cincinnati title once in his career back in 2013 and is to start his campaign against Borna Coric in Wednesday's night session. 

However, the possibility of him reclaiming the world's number one title if he wins Cincinnati has fans expecting the best despite his ongoing injury.

Rafael Nadal is not in Spain's Davis Cup squad

Rafael Nadal will be absent from the group stage of the Davis Cup finals next month as his name is not included in the list for the Spain team.

The 36-year-old picked up the Australian Open and French Open titles earlier this year and took his record-breaking Grand Slam singles titles tally to 22.

However, he walked out of Wimbledon with an abdominal injury before he could even compete against semi-finalist Nick Kyrgios. Nadal will make a comeback at Cincinnati Masters but will skip the Davis Cup, where he won the tournament for the fifth time with Spain in 2019.

Spain will put their hopes on teenage sensation Carlos Alcaraz. Sergi Bruguera's team will compete against Canada, Serbia and South Korea in Group B, which will be held in Valencia from September 13-18.

The top two from each of the four groups will enter the knock-out phase in Malaga in November. Zverev was not active after an ankle injury at the June Roland Garros semi-final against Nadal.

The world number two will play on home soil alongside France, Belgium, and Australia in Hamburg. Andy Murray will be a part of 2015 winners Britain who will face Kazakhstan, the United States, and the Netherlands in Glasgow.