Nadal, Swiatek survive wobbles to progress at Wimbledon

01.07.2022 - 02:49 arabnews.com

LONDON: Rafael Nadal was again forced to dig deep to reach the Wimbledon third round on Thursday as women’s top seed Iga Swiatek survived a stumble to win her 37th match on the spin.

The Spanish second seed, chasing a calendar Grand Slam, recovered from losing the third set for the second straight match to beat Lithuanian journeyman Ricardas Berankis 6-4, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.

Earlier, Spanish 17th seed Roberto Bautista Agut became the third potential dangerman in Nadal’s half of the draw to pull out with coronavirus, following the withdrawals of 2021 runner-up Matteo Berrettini and 2017 finalist Marin Cilic.

Nadal has also benefited from a shock first-round exit for Canada’s sixth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who took him to five sets at the French Open.

tennis cycling Rafael Nadal Roberto Bautista Agut Iga Swiatek Nick Kyrgios Matteo Berrettini Lorenzo Sonego France Spain Serbia Italy Australia Canada Uae Saudi Arabia Lithuania Copenhagen

Nick Kyrgios has wished Rafa Nadal well in his recovery from the injury that forced the Spaniard out of the Wimbledon semi-final and gifted the Australian a place in his first grand slam final.

Fans devastated for ‘true competitor’ Nadal as he pulls out of Wimbledon

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.

Rafael Nadal defies injury to set up Wimbledon semifinal against Nick Kyrgios

Rafael Nadal overcame an injury to beat Taylor Fritz and reach the Wimbledon semifinals for an eighth time on Wednesday, keeping alive his dream of a calendar Grand Slam. The second seed lost the first set and had to take a medical time-out in the second but raised his game to win 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10/4) in a match lasting four hours and 21 minutes. Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, will play maverick Australian Nick Kyrgios for a place in Sunday's final. He admitted he was suffering from an abdominal problem. "For a lot of moments I was thinking I would not be able to finish the match but the crowd, the energy, thanks for that," said the Spaniard. "I honestly enjoy a lot playing these kind of matches in front of you guys. I can't thank you enough for the support."

Rafael Nadal Defies Injury To Reach Eighth Wimbledon Semi-final, Defeats Taylor Fritz In Five Sets

Rafael Nadal overcame an injury to beat Taylor Fritz and reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for an eighth time on Wednesday, keeping alive his dream of a calendar Grand Slam. The second seed lost the first set and had to take a medical time-out in the second but raised his game to win 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10/4) in a match lasting four hours and 21 minutes.

'Special moments we shared' - Rafael Nadal recalls Roger Federer memories at Wimbledon after reaching semis

Rafael Nadal has spoken about his memories of playing against Roger Federer and also the abdominal injury he suffered as he recovered impressively to overcome Taylor Fritz and reach the Wimbledon semi-finals. The second seed 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. Ad/> 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.