‘It’s a shame. He realised he had no chance to beat Kyrgios’: Tennis great reacts to Nadal’s withdrawal from Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal from the semifinals of Wimbledon was a heartbreaking moment for the entire sports world, as a man looking to accomplish the very rare task of winning the calendar year Grand Slam saw that dream fall away because of every athlete’s worst fears – injury. Also Read | Rafael Nadal’s ‘dangerous’ revelation after Wimbledon withdrawal announcement: ‘…that I end my tennis career’

Nadal had fought through pain in his abdominal region to battle past Taylor Fritz of the USA in a highly-entertaining five-set contest in which both players were struggling for fitness. After the match, Nadal was lauded from all corners as a champion and a warrior, never letting pain get the best of him and never backing down.

However, the match strained the injury further, and scans showed that he had suffered a 7mm tear in his abdomen, ruling him out of the rest of the tournament. His to-be semifinal opponent, Nick Kyrgios, will now receive a bye to the final.

Nadal’s countryman Alex Corretja weighed in on the matter, explaining why Nadal chose to withdraw front he tournament when he might otherwise have pushed through the barrier of pain as he so often has in the past.

Speaking to Eurosport, he said: “For him to play on two days in these circumstances, it was going to be very difficult. I know it’s difficult for him to make the decision, but I think it’s a smart decision because if you can’t play at your top level, it’s going to be almost impossible to win the Slam.”

Nadal did win the French Open despite struggling with the flaring up of a chronic foot injury he has suffered through his entire career, which illustrates how bad the injury to his abdomen must truly be for him to pull out this late in a major event.

“I believe the most important thing for him now is to recover and take time off because if you get a tough injury, like three or four months again, away from the tournaments it will be devastating for his mind and for his goals for the year.”

Nadal has already missed a significant chunk of the season due to injury: he took time off after his Australian Open victory in February, and only returned to action in May to prepare for the French Open. It is a schedule which worked for him, earning him both those trophies.

“We always support Rafa – especially now – and it’s a shame. If he knew that he wouldn’t be able to play the semi-final, I’m sure he would have retired. But he didn’t, and he thought that he might have a chance,” continued Corretja, who twice was runner-up at the French Open.

Nadal had taken a lengthy medical timeout in the second set against Fritz, but despite TV cameras picking up his sister and father urging Nadal to retire and not worsen the injury, Nadal played on. Despite his serve speed dropping by almost 30 km/h, he produced one of his great recent performances, but it came at a great cost.

“It’s a pity, yes, but honestly, it was expected. I know that he fought so hard to beat Taylor Fritz, but he tried and he realised that he had no chance to compete at the highest level, to beat Kyrgios and most likely [Novak] Djokovic or [Cameron] Norrie in the final.”

Kyrgios is a player who favours Wimbledon, given his big serve and forehand, weapons which find more purchase on the faster grass courts. Chances are Nadal would have to fruitlessly grind through injury to get through his service games, a task which would lead him further injured and fatigued for the final, should he made it to that point. His health and fitness took precedence.

Nick Kyrgios, now into his first Slam final, awaits the winner of the contest between Novak Djokovic and Cameron Norrie in the second semifinal, to be played on Friday.