Rafael Nadal has pulled out of next week's Rotterdam Open due to the back injury that also troubled him during the Australian Open.

The 20-time grand slam winner has been struggling with the issue for a while, having also been forced to skip Spain's ATP Cup ties earlier this month.

"It is with great sadness that I have to forfeit from Rotterdam," Nadal said in a statement on Thursday.

"As most of the fans know, I suffered some back problems in Australia that started in Adelaide and continued during Melbourne.

"We found a temporary solution that allowed me to play without pain in the second week of the tournament.

"Once I got back to Spain I visited my doctor and together with my team they've advised not to play this upcoming week."

Despite the injury, Nadal did not drop a single set at the Australian Open last week until the quarter-finals when he was knocked out by Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas.

World No.3 Daniil Medvedev will replace Nadal as the top seed in the Rotterdam event, which will run from March 1-7.