Rafael Nadal was looking good to continue his red-hot Grand Slam winning streak this year at the Wimbledon Championships. However, an untimely injury setback resulted in him withdrawing from the tournament before his semi-final match against Nick Kyrgios.

Earlier this year, he had lifted the Australian Open and the French Open titles in an exhilarating fashion, taking his Grand Slam tally to a record 22 titles. Yesterday, he returned to his native country of Spain, bidding farewell to his supporters at Wimbledon.

Rafael Nadal bids adieu to Wimbledon

The 22-time Grand Slam champion has returned to Barcelona to undergo treatment for his abdominal injury. As he exited Wimbledon, he thanked all the employees who worked hard to ensure that he had a smooth time at the tournament. Subsequently, he said, “Thank you so much… Hope to see you next year, let’s see.” 

Nadal suffered a seven-millimeter tear in his abdomen during his grueling five-set match against Taylor Fritz. The Spaniard had to call for a medical timeout after finding it difficult to serve during the quarter-final match. During the break, his father even signaled Nadal to retire from the match to prevent further aggravation of his injury.

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Nadal called a press conference to announce his withdrawal from the tournament. He said, “Unfortunately as you can imagine I am here because I have to pull out from the tournament. It doesn’t make sense to go (on), even if I try through my career to keep going. It is very tough circumstances but it is obvious if I keep going the injury will be worse and worse.”

Nadal’s injury setbacks this year

Injuries have been part and parcel of Nadal’s career. Earlier this year, he suffered a rib injury that forced him to miss the Miami Open, the Monte Carlo Masters, and the Barcelona Open.

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Further, he even suffered a foot injury during his Rome Masters defeat against Denis Shapovalov. Rafael Nadal will hope to get back fit in time for the US Open, scheduled next month.