BUENOS AIRES, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Juan Martin del Potro has ruled himself out of the Australian Open as he recovers from a fractured right knee cap.

The 30-year-old Argentine returned to training in mid-December in the hope of regaining fitness ahead of the year's first Grand Slam in Melbourne, which begins on January 13.

However those plans have been dashed as he adopts a more cautious approach to his recovery.

"The recovery is going great and I will tell you later where I will be making my comeback. Unfortunately, it won't happen in Australia," Del Potro said in a social media post.

Del Potro's career has been beset by injuries and a long period on the sidelines saw his career ranking plummet to 1,045th place in 2016.

He finished the 2018 season fifth in the rankings after winning two ATP titles and reaching the final of the US Open, where he was beaten by Novak Djokovic.