MANILA – World No. 2 Rafael Nadal of Spain has withdrawn his participation from the 2009 PTT Thailand Open in Bangkok due to a stomach injury.

“I am very disappointed not to be able to play in Bangkok,” he said in a statement posted on RafaelNadal.com.

“I was looking forward to this tournament but the injury I have been suffering during the North American summer swing needs to be taken care of,” he added.

According to his official website, this is the second time Nadal pulled out from the Thai tournament because of an injury. Organizers of the Thailand Open have already apologized to tenis fans for any inconvenience caused by Nadal’s withdrawal.

The event’s website reported that Nadal sent an e-mail to the organizers, expressing his disappointment over his withdrawal. He was even supposed to enjoy a holiday in Krabi before the tournament.

Details of injury

The website also revealed details of Nadal’s injury after Dr. Angel Ruiz Cotorro, Medical Services Chief for the Royal Spanish Tennis Federation, gave them Nadal’s medical certificate.

The Spanish tennis star was “suffering from an acute rupture of his right abdominal muscle, which was confirmed by an ultrasound.”

He would then need to undergo medical treatment “consisting of physiotherapy, rest, and medication” for two to three weeks.

“I am really looking forward to playing next year in Thailand where I have a very loyal and big fan base,” Nadal said.

The PTT Thailand Open 2009 will be held from Sept. 26 to Oct. 4 at the Impact Arena in Muang Thong Thani, Bangkok. Players who have confirmed their participation include Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gilles Simon, Jarkko Nieminen, Benjamin Becker and Marat Safin.

Verdasco, Hewitt in Malaysia

The 2009 Proton Malaysian Open, meantime, will be held concurrently with the Thailand Open.

The inaugural Malaysian tennis event will be held at the Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur Sept. 26 to Oct. 4.

Fernando Verdasco, Lleyton Hewitt, Fernando Gonzalez, Nikolay Davydenko, Robin Soderling, Gael Monfils, David Ferrer and Tomas Berdych are slated to compete at the Malaysian Open.

The other confirmed players are Jose Acasuso, Richard Gasquet, Andrey Golubev, Igor Kunitsyn, Feliciano Lopez, Christophe Rochus, Florent Serra, Dmitry Tursunov, Martin Vassallo Arguello, Kristof Vliegen and Mikhail Youzhny.

The Proton Malaysian Open offers $947,750 in prize money.