Tennis pro's dad in hospital? Or jail?

A hearing date has been set in the criminal prosecution of the father of a former tennis professional who was arrested for the rape of two nine-year-old girls.

Nick Philippoussis will appear on January 4 for a readiness hearing where prosecutors will lay out their case against him.

Phillipoussis, whose son Mark Philippoussis was a professional tennis player who played in finals matches at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, was arrested in July of this year.

His arrest came after the parents of two young girls who were taking tennis lessons from Philippoussis notified authorities of the alleged abuse that had taken place over the course of a year and occurred in his Mira Mesa home, in his car, and at the tennis complex where he coached the girls.

Philippoussis has remained in jail since his July arrest. However, according to a November 17 report by The Australian, where Philippoussis was from, the 68-year-old tennis coach has been hospitalized for the past month at a local San Diego hospital.

Philippoussis's defense attorney did not disclose the reason for the extended hospital stay or respond to a request for more information.

The district attorney's office could not confirm the hospitalization or where the senior Philippoussis is currently.

But it appears as if Phillipoussis’s days in court won't be ending anytime soon.

The Reader obtained a civil lawsuit was filed which appears to name Philippoussis as the defendant.

The case is under protective seal, but here's what is known: the lawsuit was filed by the family of two unnamed minors who "took sporting lessons for a specific sport that were operated, owned, controlled, supervised, and/or managed" by an unnamed "youth sport instructor."

The complaint also names the instructor's wife and the sports camp they ran together.

According to the complaint, filed in San Diego County Superior Court, "At some point around mid/late 2016, THE PERPETRATOR began emotionally abusing Plaintiffs and, further, inappropriately touching Plaintiffs. THE PERPETRATOR's acts included inappropriate physical and sexual contact and touching of their breasts and reproductive parts."

The lawsuit states that the abuse ended on June 1, 2017, at the same time police were notified of the allegations against Philippoussis.

Reads the lawsuit, "Plaintiffs suffered and continue to suffer great pain of mind and body, shock, emotional distress, embarrassment, loss of self-esteem, disgrace, humiliation, and loss of enjoyment of life; have suffered and continue to suffer and were prevented and will continue to be prevented from obtaining the full enjoyment of life; and have incurred and will continue to incur expenses for medical and psychological treatment, therapy, and counseling."

Attorney's for the family would not comment on the lawsuit. A judge has ordered the case be sealed from the public.