Safin pulls out of Australian Open

January 11, 2006 11:07 IST

Russian Marat Safin will not defend his Australian Open title, saying on Wednesday that he had not recovered sufficiently from a knee injury.

"I am very sad that I cannot go to the Australian Open to defend my title as champion," Safin said on his website.

"I have been working very hard and it is a lot better. I am sorry to all my Australian fans but I will be back next year," he said.

Safin beat world number one Roger Federer in the semi-finals in Melbourne last year before toppling local favourite Lleyton Hewitt in the final to win his first Australian Open title.

Safin tore a knee ligament at Wimbledon and has not played since the Cincinnati Masters Series in August.

The Australian Open begins in Melbourne on Monday.

Get Rediff News in your Inbox:

Source:

© Copyright 2025 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.