"Time violations, obscenity & God knows how many more violations to come" - Cueist Pankaj Advani on Rafael Nadal & Nick Kyrgios' showdown in Wimbledon SF
Despite being hampered by an abdominal injury, Rafael Nadal got past 11th seed Taylor Fritz in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon in five tough sets on Wednesday. The Spaniard even contemplated retiring from the match mid-way but came back to win against all odds to keep his hopes for a third Wimbledon crown and a calendar Slam alive.
The 36-year-old will face Nick Kyrgios in the semifinals of the grasscourt Major on Friday. Kyrgios got past Cristian Garin in straight sets to reach the last four of a Slam for the first time in his career. The duo have faced off nine times in the past and almost all of their encounters have been hard-fought battles, with Nadal leading the head-to-head 6-3.
Ahead of their third SW19 showdown, Indian cueist Pankaj Advani had a few thoughts about their match. The 36-year-old tweeted that he feels sorry for the chair umpire who has to officiate their match on Friday. He added that obscenity, time and other violations would likely be a part of their last-four clash.
"Rafa vs Kyrgios semis @Wimbledon !! I’m feeling sorry for the Chair umpire already 🙈😝Time violations, obscenity and God knows how many more violations to come in this match 😛😉 #drama," Pankaj Advani wrote in his tweet.
#dramaRafa vs Kyrgios semis @Wimbledon !! I’m feeling sorry for the Chair umpire already 🙈😝
Time violations, obscenity and God knows how many more violations to come in this match 😛😉 #drama
The 23-time International Billiards and Snooker Federation world champion is an avid fan of tennis and gives his thoughts on the sport quite often, including outside of Grand Slam events.
Great run 👏
The background was equally interesting 😝 twitter.com/TennisTV/statu…
Rafael Nadal's participation in Wimbledon SFs in doubt after abdominal injury
Rafael Nadal had to play through yet another injury against Taylor Fritz this year, with the Spaniard's movement and serve being hampered by an abdominal injury throughout their quarterfinal match at Wimbledon.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion admitted that he had no clear answer as to whether he'd be able to continue at the tournament and confirmed that his team had urged him to retire from the match.
Sebastian Nadal telling his son Rafael to quit? #Wimbledon #Nadal https://t.co/L0LiJQQttY
"I don’t know honestly, I can’t give you a clear answer because if I give you a clear answer and tomorrow when another thing happens, I will be a liar, so I can’t," Rafael Nadal said in his post-match press conference.
“They told me I needed to retire from the match. For me it was tough to retire in the middle of the match. [It was] not easy, even if I had that idea for such a long time," he added.
The Spaniard stated that he will have to get everything checked properly before arriving at his decision and that his health is more important than winning a third Wimbledon title.
"I need to know different opinions and I need to check everything the proper way. That is even something more important than win Wimbledon, that is the health and let’s see how this is going," he said.