Tennis fans at Wimbledon say they are “devastated” for Rafael Nadal after he was forced to pull out of the grand slam tournament due to an abdominal injury.
The 22-time grand-slam champion battled through the issue to beat Taylor Fritz in five sets on Wednesday to progress into the semi-finals at SW19, but scans a day later revealed the severity of the injury.
Nadal was set to play Nick Kyrgios in Friday’s semi-final, but his Australian opponent will now receive a walkover into a maiden major final.
He announced in a press conference on Thursday evening that he would be withdrawing, ending his bid for winning all four grand slams in a year.
Related News