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May 30, 2022

May 30, 2022May 30, 2022 IFMSPORTS

Nadal Sets Up Djokovic Quarter-Final At French Open

Rafael Nadal set up a French Open quarter-final against long-time rival Novak Djokovic with an absorbing five-set win over Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Spain's Nadal, 35, dropped sets for the first time at this year's event but recovered to win 3-6 6-3 6-2 3-6 6-3.

Top seed Djokovic produced his best level so far in the tournament to beat 15th seed Diego Schwartman 6-1 6-3 6-3.

Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev will also meet in the last eight after each claimed straight-set victories.

Sixth seed Alcaraz, 19, sublimely swept aside Karen Khachanov 6-1 6-4 6-4 while third seed Zverev triumphed 7-6 (13-11) 7-5 6-3 despite a patchy performance against qualifier Bernabe Zapata Miralles.

The biggest draw of the next round though will be Nadal and Djokovic meeting for a men's record 59th time.

Fifth seed Nadal fixed up the encounter by beating ninth seed Auger-Aliassime for his 109th win in 112 matches at the French Open.

Rafael Nadal Wins On Injury Return

Rafael Nadal's latest comeback from injury began with a straight-set win over Serbia's Miomir Kecmanovic as he moved into the Madrid Open third round.

Spain's Nadal, 35, secured a 6-1 7-6 (7-4) victory in his first match since March following a rib injury.

Britain's Cameron Norrie and Dan Evans also won their second-round matches.

World number 11 Norrie beat American John Isner 6-4 6-7 (7-5) 6-4, while Evans won 6-3 5-7 7-6 (7-2) against Spain's Roberto Bautista Agut.

Five-time champion Nadal did not expect to play in Madrid after suffering a stress fracture of the rib in Indian Wells at the end of March.

But the 21-time Grand Slam champion announced last week he was going to play and looked in good shape against world number 32 Kecmanovic.

Nadal eased through an opening set where he did not face a break point and, after rain interrupted play, broke for a 3-2 lead in the second set.

Kecmanovic, who has enjoyed a career-best start to the season with 23 victories so far, instantly broke back for 3-3 and did the same when Nadal had taken his serve for a 6-5 lead.

To the delight of the home crowd, Nadal dominated the tie-break to progress into last-16.

Rafael Nadal Ruled Out For 6 Weeks With Rib Injury

Rafael Nadal will be out for four to six weeks due to a stress fracture in his rib.

The injury occurred during the Spaniard's semi-final victory over Carlos Alcaraz at Indian Wells on Saturday.

As he lost the final against Taylor Fritz, the 21-time Grand Slam champion found breathing difficult and said he was disoriented.

While the French Open begins on May 22 in Paris, 35-year-old Nadal is scheduled to miss both of next month's clay court majors in Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

Nadal has won the Roland Garros title a total of 13 times.

He stated he "immediately went to visit my medical team to do tests after I played with discomfort in the final" when he returned to Spain, according to a post on social media.

The Spaniard added: "As it turns out, I have a stress crack in one of my ribs. This is not good news and I did not expect this."

This year, Nadal has been the best player in the world, capped by his victory at the Australian Open, when he defeated Daniil Medvedev in a thrilling final.

His loss against Fritz in California was his first of the year, and it ended a 20-match winning streak.

Nadal isn't expected to be able to practice for another four weeks, and his next competition is the Madrid Open, which starts in six weeks.

March 21, 2022

March 21, 2022 IFMSPORTS

Taylor Fritz Defeats Rafael Nadal To Claim Maiden Indian Wells Title

Rafael Nadal said he suffered from breathing difficulties during his straight sets defeat by Taylor Fritz in the Indian Wells final.

35-year-old Nadal, appeared out of sorts and quickly found himself 4-0 down before leaving the court for treatment.

The Tennis great looked more comfortable on his return but struggled to break down a determined Fritz who eventually won 6-3 7-6 (7-5).

“It’s tough for me to breathe. When I try to breathe, it’s painful and it’s very uncomfortable,” said Nadal.

“When I’m breathing, when I’m moving it’s like a needle all the time inside here. I get dizzy a little bit because it’s painful. It’s a kind of pain that limits me a lot. It’s not only about pain, I don’t feel very well because it affects my breathing.”

Spaniard Nadal, who claimed victory at the Australian Open earlier this year, had won his previous 20 matches but suffered his first defeat of 2022.

But he made 34 unforced errors in the match compared to 22 from Fritz.

“Honestly I am sad because of the way I was not able to compete,” he added. “The thing that worries me now, it’s about what’s going on there, what I have to do now to recover and how long it’s going to take.”

Fritz’s victory meant he became the first American to win at Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 2001, 21 years ago.

He saved two break points at 5-5 in the second set before winning a tie-break to secure his second ATP Tour title – and first Masters 1000 victory.

There were concerns about his fitness after he suffered an ankle injury in the semi-final win against Andrey Rublev but he showed no ill-effects during his win.

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Tag: Rafael Nadal

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