Nadal's injury issues re-emerge before Aussie Open
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Rafael Nadal has concerns over his surgically repaired left hip just two wins and a loss into his comeback from a year-long injury layoff, and just over a week before the Australian Open.
The 22-time major winner needed a medical timeout in the third set of his Brisbane International quarterfinal loss to Jordan Thompson on Friday after failing to convert three match points in the second.
He miscued an overhead backhand on his first match point in the 10th game of the second set, about two hours into the contest. Then he missed consecutive forehands from 6-4 in the tiebreaker before No. 55-ranked Thompson rallied to win 5-7, 7-6 (6), 6-3.
"Sad in this moment because I had plenty of opportunities," Nadal said. "I didn't play bad, but I was just one ball away."
With the Australian Open starting Jan. 14, Nadal's rehabilitation from the hip injury and surgery that sidelined him for most of 2023 will be tested.
Of the injury, Nadal said it felt more like a muscle issue than the tendon problem that caused him so much trouble last year, and he was hopeful it was just fatigue and he'd be OK.
"I hope it is not important and I hope to have the chance to be practicing next week and to play in Melbourne," he said. "Honestly, I am not 100% sure of anything now."
He said the pain was in "a very similar place to what happened last year, but different stuff."
"I mean, for sure is not the same like last year at all because when it happened last year, I felt something drastic immediately," he said. "Today I didn't feel anything. The only problem is because the place is the same, you are a little bit more scared than usual."
The 37-year-old Spaniard opened the tournament with straight-sets wins over Dominic Thiem and Jason Kubler but was pushed for 3 hours and 25 minutes by Thompson in what was his third match in four nights.
His energy level visibly waned at the start of the third set. And after Thompson broke in the fourth game and then held for a 4-1 lead, Nadal was assessed by the trainer for his upper left leg.
He left the court for a medical timeout before returning and playing on another 20 minutes.
After sending a backhand long on match point to end the longest rally of the match, Nadal walked around the net to embrace Thompson. He blew a kiss and waved to the crowd as he walked off Pat Rafter Arena around midnight.
Thompson also got the upper hand in a doubles match last Sunday when he combined with Max Purcell to beat Nadal and Marc Lopez, the 2016 Olympic champions.
"Obviously he's one of the best of all time, so there’s no pressure on me," Thompson said. "But there's always a sense of pressure playing at home, in front of an Aussie crowd. He can destroy an opponent, so there's always that element that can make you nervous. But you still got to take it to him and play your own game."
Thompson's reward this time is a semifinal against second-seeded Grigor Dimitrov, a former Brisbane International champion.
Top-seeded Holger Rune had a 6-2, 7-6 (6) win over James Duckworth to set up a semifinal against Roman Safiullin, who beat Matteo Arnaldi 7-6 (4), 6-2.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis