Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from Wimbledon before Friday’s semi-final with Nick Kyrgios, admitting that the injury picked up against Taylor Fritz is too much of a hindrance for him to continue. It means that Nick Kyrgios will get a walkover to make his first slam final.
Nadal was visibly struggling during his stunning five set quarter final win, where a retirement seemed inevitable prior to Nadal doing what he does best. Afterwards, it was confirmed that he had suffered an tear in his abdominal muscle.
“I have tried a lot of times in my career to keep going but it is obvious the injury will get worse,” he said.
“Throughout the whole day I have been thinking about the decision to make,” Nadal said in a Thursday press conference. “I think it doesn’t make sense to play. I feel very sad to say that.”
While he wouldn’t have wanted it to happen this way and may well have defeated a reasonably fit Nadal anyway, Kyrgios can finally say that has delivered on the hype in making a slam final. He will have more than a chance against Djokovic assuming he wins and would be a fair favourite against Cameron Norrie.
You Love Tennis Right…
Join the Stevegtennis.com tennis club for free. Just enter your email below for…
Tennis news updates once a week.
Special offers on tennis gear.
Unsubscribe at any time.
We will never share your email.
About Aaron Higgs
Experienced tennis writer with a focus on event previews and results.
