Wimbledon: Rafael Nadal playing with '7mm abdominal tear' leaves Mats Wilander 'completely amazed'
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Updated 07/07/2022 at 15:49 GMT
"Nadal is very talented tactically. I think he knew that he could still beat Taylor Fritz despite the injury, even if he’s not 100 per cent physically," Mats Wilander said after the Spaniard reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon despite a bad abdominal injury. "I’m completely amazed because I thought he was going to retire towards the end of the first set. You can get used to playing with pain."
'He has to be close to 100%' - Wilander on Nadal ahead of Krygios clash
Eurosport's Mats Wilander has said he is "completely amazed" by Rafael Nadal managing to come through his quarter-final with Taylor Fritz despite having reportedly suffered a 7mm abdominal tear.
The Spaniard somehow managed to continue his quest to secure a historic Calendar Slam in 2022 after he roared back to beat Fritz in a marathon quarter-final. It took all of Nadal's famous mental strength and physical resilience to come through the encounter with a scoreline of 3-6 7-5 3-6 7-5 7-6 to reach the semi-finals.
Nadal, who was looking to win his third Grand Slam singles title in succession after his incredible triumphs at the Australian Open and French Open already this year, took a medical timeout at 4-3 up in the second set. He battled on valiantly and managed to overcome the American in a final-set thriller.
It has now been reported in the Spanish press that medical tests revealed he suffered a seven-millimetre tear in one of his abdominal muscles during the match. According to Cadena Ser, Nadal appeared at the All England Tennis Club at 2pm on Thursday, and minutes later, he began training to prepare for the semi-final.
Nadal admitted that his father Sebastian, who was sitting in his box inside Centre Court, had gestured to his son to retire injured when he left the court to receive treatment for the abdominal tear midway through the second set. It was a situation that left Wilander stunned.
"Nadal is very talented tactically. I think he knew that he could still beat Taylor Fritz despite the injury, even if he’s not 100 per cent physically," Wilander said.
"But at the same time, not being 100 per cent physically means you can hit the ball better because you are more relaxed and it’s clearer to you about how you need to play: you can’t hit hard first serves, so have to put it in play, and then work the point from there.
"I’m completely amazed because I thought he was going to retire towards the end of the first set. He somehow won the second, and then it seemed like he was getting better.
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Rafael Nadal suffers abdominal tear during his Wimbledon quarter-final
Image credit: Getty Images
"The most important part is that it didn’t affect his running. That’s the biggest difference when you’re injured: if you can’t run, it’s difficult to finish the match. But you can’t just serve, hit a two-handed backhand or a top-spin forehand.
"Should he have been good enough to win it? No, I don’t think so. Taylor Fritz, I’m not sure how he feels today.
"You can get used to playing with pain and not being 100 per cent. That, I think we can all get used to. The difference is believing whether you still have a chance of winning. It’s very easy to find an excuse.
"Rafa somehow finds the intensity to win the match even though he’s not 100 per cent. The humility of playing his opponent. it’s not the quarters of Wimbledon, it’s not the Centre Court, it’s just him and Taylor Fritz, and he feels like he can deal with this guy, even if he’s not 100 per cent.”
Eurosport's Alex Corretja said "it will be very difficult" for Nadal as he attempts to overcome Kyrgios to reach another Wimbledon final, and that his compatriot "needs to find a solution".
"We need to see how Rafa is," Corretja said. "If he is like what he was today [Wednesday], it will be very difficult. He needs to find a solution. Of course, against Kyrgios he needs to be 100 per cent.
"If he goes on court and he sees that playing that way he has a chance to continue and win, he will go ahead. Otherwise, I don't think he will do it because he's got a tough opponent.
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"His [Kyrgios] serving rate, he applies a lot of pressure and he also proved to himself that he can play very well from the back of the court, just as he did against [Cristian] Garin. I'm expecting a very tough match. Hopefully, Rafa can recover because we all want everybody to be healthy and then we will see what is going on.
"The first and most important thing is that Rafa can be okay to play, then the match is going to be very tough for both."
He added: "This is unreal, this is epic. Only if you are Rafa Nadal are you able to know how to win this match – I have no clue how he did it, honestly. You could see Rafa was struggling with his abdominals, he probably played better when he was returning because he was using his hands more and hitting the ball a little harder.
"Sometimes when you are tired, instead of using your body you use your wrist and the ball goes even faster – that’s how I think Rafa found a way. Only Rafa Nadal, I think, can stay on the court and manage this type of situation because he is used to suffering so many of these types of injuries throughout his career."
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Watch daily highlights from Wimbledon at 10pm on Eurosport 2 and discovery+ from June 27, as well as the two singles finals live on July 9 and 10.
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