Spanish world number 1 Rafael Nadal resigned due to a right leg injury in the fifth set of his Australian Open quarter-final match against Croatian Marin Cilic, when the score was 3-6, 6-3. 6-7 (5/7), 6-2 and 2-0, in Melbourne.
Nadal requested a medical time-out in the middle of the fourth set to receive an upper right leg massage. He then couldn’t run normally and limped between exchanges.
Cilic will play for a place in the final with the British Kyle Edmund (49th), who previously surprised the Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov (N.3) in four sets, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 and 6-4.
In a high-flying match, even without injury, Nadal could have lost because Cilic caused him problems early on.
«We were both having a great game. It’s a real shame for Rafa, who is a great fighter, to finish like this, ”said Cilic, who will play his second semi-final in Australia after 2010.
– ‘The blocked leg’ –
The 31-year-old Nadal had arrived in Australia without shooting due to a right knee injury, which forced him to withdraw from the London Masters in November. In the last edition of the first great of the year he was a finalist against Roger Federer.
Following his abandonment, only three seeded players remain in the tournament; Cilic (N.6), already in the semifinals, and Federer (N.2) and Tomas Berdych (N.19), who will play in the quarterfinals on Wednesday.
This Tuesday, after three hours and 47 minutes, Nadal said enough and retired, a rarity for a player who hates leaving a game before the end. It is only the second time he has dropped out at the Grand Slam. The first was also in the quarterfinals for Australia, in 2010 against Andy Murray.
“My leg was completely blocked, it hurt a lot when I moved. I waited to see if the anti-inflammatories would take effect but finally I couldn’t move, and without moving I couldn’t win, “said Nadal, winner of the first big of the year in 2009.
Very affected after the game, the Spaniard confessed his “sadness”: “It is a tournament that I adore and I felt capable of fighting for the title, this has happened to me several times here.”
Nadal, winner of 16 Grand Slam tournaments, lost the 2014 final to Stan Wawrinka in a game that was clearly weighed down by a back problem.
As for the details of his injury, Nadal declined to speak before undergoing a medical examination on Wednesday. In any case, it is not about the knee injury that he dragged in the last months of 2017, but about a pain in the upper part of the leg.
– Edmund, the triumph of the Gónzalez fan –
Cilic, the 2014 US Open winner, played at his best, matching 83 winners to Nadal’s 39. Relying on his great serve (20 aces), the Croatian accepted the risks and also multiplied the fouls (62), but managed to destabilize Nadal. “I was in the fight and had a set advantage,” recalled the Spaniard.
Nadal, who arrived in Australia without playing official matches this year, will retain his place at number 1. He sent a message to the ATP before the media, accusing it of organizing too many fast track tournaments, the most damaging to the body.
“When there are so many injured players, they should at least wonder if everything is done for the health of the players,” he said.
Earlier, in the first quarterfinal match, Edmund gave the big surprise to Dimitrov, the player who threatened the hierarchy of Nadal and Federer.
English born in South Africa 23 years ago and resident of the Bahamas, Edmund showed his great service (12 aces) and was able to impose his offensive game against the Bulgarian.
«I know I have a great forehand, with experience I have learned to use it better. I am confident with this blow, “said this admirer of Chilean Fernando González, another player with great power. AFP