ADELAIDE, Jan 13 — Top seed Alex de Minaur withdrew from the Adelaide International with an abdominal injury today, casting doubt over his fitness for the Australian Open.

He was the second seed to pull out after Novak Djokovic, who led Serbia to the ATP Cup title in Sydney, opted to head straight to Melbourne ahead of his title defence at the year’s opening Grand Slam.

"I re-aggravated an abdominal injury and have had to withdraw,” said de Minaur, who had an intense week leading Australia at the ATP Cup team event.

"It’s devastating, Adelaide has been part of my schedule for a long time. I was looking forward to playing but I have to take care of my body.

"It’s not the happiest moment, but this is something that happens. I’ve got to do what I can to make sure the body recovers.”

The disappointed player did not mention the Australian Open, which starts on January 20, but gave every indication that he was facing a race to be ready.

"My sole focus is making sure I recover for the next one. I had a great ATP Cup week, and played some great tennis,” he said.

"I’ve still got a lot to learn and there is a lot to improve. I need to be positive every time I step onto the court.”

The 18th-ranked de Minaur helped Australia to the semi-finals at the ATP Cup, winning two of his four singles matches and pushing world number one Rafael Nadal hard in an engrossing three-setter.

Nicknamed ‘Demon’, the 20-year-old had a breakout year in 2019, winning titles at Zhuhai, Atlanta and Sydney, to move ahead of Nick Kyrgios as Australia’s top player. — AFP