After a stellar start to the event taking out two stage wins and sitting top of the points classification, Ewan pulled out midway through Stage 8, with the team reporting his knee as the issue on the day.
Ewan took to Twitter on Monday night to clarify his exit and thank his fans for their ongoing support throughout and after the race.
"Thanks to all the people sending nice 'get well soon' messages," Ewan wrote. "I've done some stuff with my positioning to help the knee pain I've felt since the start of stage 8. Once it's completely gone, I'll resume my training to prepare for the Tour.
"Honestly, it'll be hard to watch the sprint today at the Giro d'Italia and also on the 13th stage as I felt my form was coming to its best."
Ewan also addressed the criticism he had received for abandoning the race, after prolific ex-pro Eddy Merckx blasted his actions in a column for Belgian media outlet Het Nieuwsblad.
"That Caleb Ewan also bothers me enormously," Merckx wrote. "I find his statement a total lack of professionalism and lack of respect for the Giro and the sport of cycling.
"He deserves a sanction: take away all the bonuses. Former Tour boss Félix Lévitan would have said: 'you won't be at this race next year'."
Ewan expressed this wasn't the case at all, emphasising his commitment to training before the race in order to compete at a high level.
"To the people who think I've disrespected the race, I'm sorry you feel that way," Ewan wrote.
"If you saw the hard work and dedication I've put into my preparation to honour this race and perform at my best, I'm sure you wouldn't think the same. I'm more disappointed than anyone."
The Giro d'Italia continues on SBS on Wednesday night with Stage 11, live from 20:45 on SBS VICELAND and SBS OnDemand.
