Rafael Nadal has pulled out of Wimbledon due to health concerns, pushing Nick Kyrgios into the men’s singles finals for the first time.
Nadal sustained an abdominal injury in his quarterfinal win over Taylor Fritz meaning that the tennis champion has had to resign from the tournament.
The sports star confirmed that he had intact torn a muscle and is very disappointed that he won’t be able to play.
Nadal, who won the Australian and French open, said in a statement: “I have to pull out of the tournament as I have been suffering with pain in abdominal,”
“I knew something was not okay there, [and] it’s confirmed: I have a tear in the muscle in the abdomen.
“I can’t imagine winning two matches with this [pain]. For me, the most important thing is happiness rather than the title even though everyone knows how much effort I put into this as I can’t risk being out of the sport for two to three months.
“I am very sad.”
Nadal’s last match lasted a whopping 4 hours and after he was injured he was required to take a medical timeout. The Spanish athlete said his serve was greatly affected by the pain in his abdomen.
Nadal added that he had hoped he was “ready to play” Kyrgios in his next match.
Now, Kyrgios is set to play his first-ever grand slam at Wimbledon despite the recent allegations and charges brought upon him for assaulting his ex-girlfriend.
Earlier this week, the governing body of men’s tennis told Reuters: “The ATP is aware of the Australian case involving Nick Kyrgios but as legal proceedings are ongoing it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time,”
Despite all the drama, Kyrgios is still hoping to win and become the first Australian men’s singles champion since Lleyton Hewitt scored the trophy in 2002.
