The extended Olympic season has finally taken its toll on world number one, Rafael Nadal, who has been forced to withdraw from the Masters Cup due to fatigue.

Nadal pulled out of the Paris Masters last Friday in the middle of his match with Nikolay Davydenko after suffering an injury. Subsequent reports suggested that Nadal was suffering from burnout, which he confirmed on his website when announcing his withdrawal from the Masters Cup.

“It has been a long and difficult year where I managed to obtain great results, both on a professional and on a personal level,” Nadal said. “I have mentioned on various occasions that the tennis calendar has been extremely hard with practically all weeks playing and where it forces players to compete week in, week out, making it impossible for a top level player to be 100 percent for each event.”

Good news for those looking forward to the Davis Cup final later this month is that Nadal still intends to compete in the event in Mar del Plata, and will use his absence from the Masters Cup to recuperate and prepare for the thrilling finale of the tennis season.

“I want to recover and be ready for the important Davis Cup final with my country that will be played in Mar del Plata, Argentina. That is also another reason for not coming to Shanghai,” Nadal confirmed.