Nadal Advances To Roland Garros Final After Zverev Retires😢
Rafael Nadal advanced to the Roland Garros final 14 on Friday in tragic circumstances when a serious ankle injury to Alexander Zverev halted their epic fight on the eve of the second-set tiebreaker, in a match that had already lasted more than three hours.
Under the roof of the Court Philippe Chatrier, one of the matches of the season was cut short by a score of 7-6 (8), 6-6, when the German had to leave the court in a wheelchair after his right ankle rolled badly when he moved to his right when tracking Nadal's forehand behind the baseline.
Zverev wept in pain after the fall and had to be helped in a wheelchair by the physio and Nadal, who quickly made his way through the net to help support the 25-year-old. Clearly, in agony, the world No. 3 returned to the court on crutches several minutes later to shake hands with the referee. He received a standing ovation from fans and a hug from Nadal, who is now one win away from grabbing an expanded 22nd Grand Slam trophy record.
"Very difficult and very sad for him," Nadal said on the court after the match. "Honestly, he was playing an incredible tournament. He is a very good fellow on tour. I know how much he fights to win the Grand Slam tournament, but at the moment he was unlucky. The only thing I'm sure of is that he won't win one — more than one. I wish him all the best and a very quick recovery."
Zverev played bold and brilliant tennis. He had four set points in a dramatic tiebreaker for the first set before Nadal produced a stunning combination of attack and defense to claim the opener. The intensity did not decrease in the pulsating second set that reached the tie-break again before the match that promised to become the best of the year was cruelly truncated.
The injury robbed Zverev of his chance to rise to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP rankings by winning his first major.
"It was a very difficult match, over three hours and we didn't even finish the second set. "It's one of the biggest challenges of the tour today when he plays at such a high level, to play against him. "It's hard to say a lot of things today, the situation. Of course for me, as everyone knows, to be in the Roland Garros final for another time is undoubtedly a dream.
"But at the same time, to finish this way... I've been there in a little room with Sasha before we went back to court, and seeing him cry there is a very difficult moment, so all the best to him."
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