Adelaide: Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis has withdrawn from the Adelaide International tennis tournament due to a shoulder injury. As a result, Valentin Vacherot advanced to the quarter-finals by walkover. Vacherot will now face the winner of the match between top seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Rinky Hijikata.
Kokkinakis had recently returned to singles competition after a prolonged absence following surgery, but unfortunately suffered another setback due to injury. He had been sidelined for nearly a year because of the surgery. Despite experiencing shoulder pain, he managed to win his opening singles match, defeating Sebastian Korda in a final-set tie-break, even though he was troubled by pain in his right shoulder throughout the match.
In February last year, Kokkinakis underwent surgery on his right pectoral muscle and shoulder. He made his comeback in doubles last week at the Brisbane International alongside Nick Kyrgios. However, during his singles return on centre court in his hometown, the injury resurfaced. Nevertheless, he is expected to be fit to compete at the Australian Open, which begins on January 18.
