The tennis legend had overcome abdominal tension to go back from two sets to one against American Taylor Fritz in Wednesday’s quarterfinals.
“I can’t win two games under these circumstances,” Nadal said, referring to his match against Kyrgios and then the final if he won the semi-final.
“The most important thing is happiness … I can’t risk this match and stay out of the competition for two or three months.”
Nadal kept the right decision not to retire against Fritz, an epic match he won after dominating a final tiebreaker of seven, 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10 -4).
If Nadal had retired during that clash, Fritz would have advanced to the semifinals against Kyrgios.
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“Yes, [it] it was the right decision because I finished the game “, said Nadal.
“I won the game. I did the things I felt [right] at every moment.
“I’m not the type of player or the kind of person that when you make decisions, I’ll look back and say, ‘I shouldn’t have done this, or I should have done something else.’
“I didn’t want to retire, get off the track in the middle of a quarterfinal match.”
He said he slowed his speed of service and his move against Fritz to try to manage the injury.
“I ended up with a victory … the tests say I have [an abdominal tear]”He said.
With AAP
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