"The closer you come, the harder you work for it, the more it hurts in the end when it doesn't go your way" - Taylor Fritz on his Wimbledon QF loss to Rafael Nadal
A wounded Rafael Nadal prevailed yet again on the big stage, this time at the cost of big-serving American Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. The eleventh seed tried his best to stop the second seed's unbeaten run at the Grand Slams this year but fell short 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) after four hours and twenty minutes of astonishing tennis on Center Court.
Nadal looked exhausted and completely worn out in the third set after struggling to cope with an abdominal injury which hampered his movement on the court and significantly affected the speed of his serve. But the 36-year-old defied the pain and his team members' plea to retire from the match, getting over the line to make the last four at Wimbledon.
Fritz took to his Twitter handle to share his feelings about the upsetting quarterfinal loss.
"The closer you come, the harder you work for it, the more it hurts in the end when it doesn't go your way. Gave it absolutely everything I had but still needed more, Thank you for all the love and support. Its an honour to battle on centre court, Back to work, just the beginning," Taylor Fritz
Gave it absolutely everything I had but still needed more... Thank you for all the love and support 
an honor to battle on centre court. Back to work 
🏻 just the beginning twitter.com/wimbledon/stat…
The closer you come, the harder you work for it, the more it hurts in the end when it doesn’t go ur way😔 Gave it absolutely everything I had but still needed more... Thank you for all the love and support ❤️ an honor to battle on centre court. Back to work 💪🏻 just the beginning twitter.com/wimbledon/stat…
The World No. 14 won his first ATP Masters 1000 title at Indian Wells earlier this year, outwitting Nadal in the finals.
The quest to win his maiden Grand Slam title may have ended, but the American has gained some invaluable experience playing against one of the greatest players of the game. He will be raring to put his best foot forward in the upcoming hard-court season.
“I don’t know, honestly, I can’t give you a clear answer” - Rafael Nadal addresses his chances of playing in the semifinals
While playing the quarterfinals match on Wednesday night, Rafael Nadal had abdominal pain and needed a medical timeout in the second set. He had been experiencing pain for almost a week and it intensified heavily during the match against Fritz.
When asked about his chances of playing against Kyrgios on Friday in his post-match press conference, Nadal said he wasn't sure just yet.
“I don’t know. Honestly, I can’t give you a clear answer because if tomorrow anything happens I will be called a liar, Im here because im honest and i dont have a decision. In the end its my call to play or not but at the same time i need to check everything the proper way. There's something more important than Wimbledon and that is my health,” Nadal said.
The 36-year-old was also given inflammatories during the medical time out which helped ease the pain and relax his muscles.
"They gave me some inflamatories and tried to relax my muscles a little bit, but it's difficult, nothing is fixed in an injury like this. That it," Nadal
Quite a downbeat press conference from Rafa Nadal, unable to say for sure what his status in the tournament going forward will be.
However, my prediction will be he will play on Friday. Hard to see why he would not at least try, knowing him, knowing what is at stake.
The two-time Wimbledon winner is two wins away from creating history once again. It will be his 23rd Grand Slam title and will edge him closer to a prestigious Calendar Grand Slam after winning the first two majors of the year.