British number one Tim Henman has pulled out of next week's Lyon Grand Prix in order to rest his sore back. The 30-year-old aggravated his back problem and suffered a swollen shoulder during Great Britain's Davis Cup defeat to Austria last weekend.
He announced on Wednesday that he would miss Sunday's Superset tennis event in London and has now withdrawn from Lyon.
The world number four would have been top seed for the indoor event, which was won last year by Rainer Schuettler.
But he was staying hopeful that he will be able to return to continue his bid to make the end-of-season Masters Cup.
 |  I feel it's important to let my body recuperate fully |
"Judging the severity of most injuries is never easy," he told his website.
"On occasion this year I've struggled on with an illness or an injury and managed to do pretty well considering, but I think the best course of action in this instance is to rest up and let my body recover."
"I was looking forward to going to Lyon as I'd like to improve my ranking and qualify for the Tennis Masters Cup as soon as possible.
"But given there's still hopefully quite a bit of tennis to be played this year I feel it's important to let my body recuperate fully before getting back on the match court."
MMIX
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