Rafael Nadal pulls out of Wimbledon semi-final against Nick Kyrgios due to injury

Rafael Nadal has pulled out of his Wimbledon semi-final against Nick Kyrgios due to his abdominal injury, handing the Australian a walkover bye into Sunday’s final.

Nadal called an unscheduled press conference for 7:20pm on Thursday evening where he confirmed his withdrawal after failing to recover from the abdominal tear he suffered in his quarter-final victory over Taylor Fritz.

"I have to pull out of the tournament," Nadal said. "As everybody saw yesterday I have been suffering with pain in the abdominal [area]. That's confirmed. I have a tear in the muscle. I feel very sad to say that."

He added: "I make my decision because I believe I can’t win two matches under these circumstances. I can’t serve, not only not at the right speed, but it’s [that] I can’t do the normal movement to serve. 

"I have to say that to imagine myself winning two matches and for respect to myself in some way I don’t want to go out there and not be competitive enough to play at the level I need to play to achieve my goal, and with a big chance of making things worse. A couple of weeks ago I saw my career [future] very difficult. Things now are better in that way without a doubt. But as I always said the most important thing is happiness over any title.

"I can’t risk that much and stay two-three months out of competition because that would be tough for me. If that happens, it happens, but not because I wasn’t doing things properly."

We're sad to see it end this way, @RafaelNadal

Thank you for another year of unforgettable moments at The Championships#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/XadiEVxaWF

Reports in Spain claimed Nadal had a 7mm tear in his abdominal muscle after undergoing scans.

Nadal was due to practise at 12.30pm but failed to turn up at the