Struggling with physical ailment, Nadal appeared close to retiring mid-match on Wednesday on Centre Court but he found the will to beat Fritz in four hours and 20 minutes.
A third Wimbledon title and first since 2010 on the manicured lawns and a U.S. Open triumph at Flushing Meadows would see the Mallorcan claim the calendar slam — a feat last achieved in 1969 by Australian great Rod Laver.
“For a lot of moments I was thinking maybe I will not be able to finish the match”The mentality of a champion who… https://t.co/XAaUqOUNSd
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) 1657133736000
But there was no guarantee from the 36-year-old that he would be present on Centre Court to keep his historic bid going.
“I don’t know,” Nadal said when asked about his chances of playing the unseeded 27-year-old Kyrgios.
“Honestly, I can’t give you a clear answer because if I gave you a clear answer and tomorrow another thing happens, I will be a liar.”
Nadal took a medical timeout against 11th-seeded Fritz during his quarter-final outing to get treatment on the injury and said he had to adjust his game to continue playing.
25 shots of pure tennis theatre 🎭@RafaelNadal 🤝 @Taylor_Fritz97#Wimbledon | #CentreCourt100 https://t.co/KwZg3hpOye
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The Spaniard, however, considered retiring many times during the contest.
“I just wanted to give myself a chance. Not easy to leave the tournament, not easy to leave Wimbledon, even if the pain was hard,” the 22-times Grand Slam winner said.
“I don’t know. I wanted to finish. I fought. Proud about the fighting spirit and the way that I managed to be competitive under that condition.”
Nadal said he was worried about the injury and he will undergo more scans on Thursday before making a decision about continuing to compete at the grasscourt major.
“I am used to holding pain and play with problems,” said Nadal, who played and won Roland Garros with pain-killing injections prior to each match and only confirmed his Wimbledon participation after radio frequency treatment eased pain in his foot.
“Knowing that, when I feel something like I felt, that is because something is not going the proper way in abdomen. But let’s see. I had these feelings for a couple of days. Without a doubt, today was the worst day, has been an important increase of pain and limitation,” he said.
