Wimbledon: Rafael Nadal playing with '7mm abdominal tear' leaves Mats Wilander 'completely amazed'

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.

Ad/> 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. WimbledonNadal has 7mm abdominal tear ahead of Kyrgios clash — reports2 HOURS AGO 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