Prague, March 25 (CTK) – Czech tennis player Radek Stepanek, 38, a double Davis Cup winner, was operated on with lumbar spine on Thursday and he would like to to return to court in three months, he has said.
Stepanek, a bronze medalist in mixed doubles from the Rio Olympics last year, underwent the surgery to remove his chronic problems at Prague’s Na Homolce hospital.
“He has managed it excellently,” Stepanek said about his neurosurgeon Jiri Chrobok on Facebook, commenting on the operation.
He also said he was looking forward to rehabilitation and preparation since he would like to return to courts in the summer.
Stepanek ended last year’s tennis season early due to a back injury. In this season, he played only in Doha and at the Australian Open tournament in January.
He could not play Davis Cup in early February because of further problems with his back and pain in one leg.
He underwent a treatment and was training after his return from Melbourne and he even left for the United States to play in Indian Wells and Miami, but he had to change his plans due to chronic health troubles.
He decided to solve it radically and underwent a micro-surgery in Prague.
Stepenak, a double Grand Slam winner in doubles who was eighth in world standings, returned to tennis after injuries several times, for instance in 2006 and after a spinal surgery in 2013. In September 2014, he had to interrupt his tennis career for seven months over back pain.
