Rafael Nadal withdraws ahead of Wimbledon 2022 men's singles semi-final due to injury, Nick Kyrgios gets a walkover

Wimbledon 2022 Updates: 22-time Grand Slam winning champions Rafael Nadal withdrew from Wimbledon 2022 citing injury issues. He was set to play Australia's Nick Kyrgios in the men's singles semi-final on Friday (July 8). Kyrgios eventually gets a walkover. 

This is a surprise news for Rafa Nadal fans as the Spaniard had turned up for practice at Wimbledon earlier on Thursday a day after he registered a remarkable win over American Taylor Fritz while fighting an abdominal injury throughout the quarter-final clash.

He was seen hitting forehands and backhands on the practice courts at Aorangi Park a day before his semi-final against Nick Kyrgios, and also went through his service motions.

#Wimbledon | @RafaelNadal pic.twitter.com/VWuRwlwDH4 — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 7, 2022

In the quarter-final clash vs Fritz, he left the court for a medical timeout in the second set, after losing the opening set 3-6. But he came again only to be struggling again with an abdominal issue mid-way through the quarterfinal match.

After this difficult match, Nadal was unsure he if could make it for the Friday's tough semi-final against an in-form Kyrgios. "I don’t know," Nadal had 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."

The 36-year-old is battling injuries and playing through them in what is supposed to be his last phase in professional tennis. Even before the French Open 2022, he was not sure whether he would be able to make it for the tournament knowing how terrible his foot was. However, Nadal not only managed to play the tournament but win it too. 

Speaking of his superman effort in the quarter-final vs Fritz, he said that he wanted to give himself the best chance to qualify for semis. 

“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."

With Nadal withdrawing, Kyrgios has moved to the final of Wimbledon 2022, which is his first-ever Grand Slam final. He will either face Novak Djokovic or Cameron Norrie in the final. Norrie and Djokovic will play their semi-final clash on July 8 at Centre Court. The match starts at 6 pm IST.