Alex Corrertja clears the air on Rafael’s withdrawal, says the most important thing is…
Nadal withdrew from his Wimbledon semifinal versus Nick Kyrgios.
ormer world No. 2 Alex Corretja said it certainly wasn’t easy for Rafael Nadal to withdraw from Wimbledon but he feels the 36-year-old made a smart decision. On Wednesday, Nadal edged out Taylor Fritz in tough five sets despite being hampered by an abdominal injury.
A day later, the scans revealed an abdominal tear and Nadal decided to withdraw from his Wimbledon semifinal versus Nick Kyrgios. Nadal was playing at Wimbledon for the first time since 2019 and he was targeting to win his first title at The Championships since 2010.
“It’s a pity, yes, but honestly, it was expected,” Corretja told Eurosport. “I know that he fought so hard yesterday to beat Taylor Fritz, but today 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.
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.”
Alex Corrertja clears the air on Rafael’s withdrawal, says the most important thing is…
In his announcement message, Nadal said he didn’t want to take on the court knowing he could aggravate his injury and risk being out for a couple of months.
“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.
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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,” Corretja added. Hopefully, Nadal recovers in a short time and arrives to the US Open well-prepared.
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