Gibbs to miss French after cancer diagnosis

Nicole Gibbs reached a career-high world No 68 in July 2016

American tennis player Nicole Gibbs will miss the French Open after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer by her dentist.

The 26-year-old said she was made aware of a growth on the roof of her mouth during a routine visit last month, with the examination revealing she has salivary gland cancer.

Gibbs, who is ranked world No 116, will undergo surgery on Friday and has targeted a return to competitive action for Wimbledon qualifying, which begins on June 24.

“Unfortunately I will be withdrawing from the remainder of the clay season and will not be competing at this year’s Roland Garros,” Gibbs said on Twitter.

“Fortunately this form of cancer has a great prognosis and my surgeon is confident that surgery alone will be sufficient treatment.”

Gibbs also revealed her surgeon gave her permission to play in recent ITF events, which she says “served as a nice distraction”.

Roland Garros will host the second Grand Slam of the season from May 26 to June 9.

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