Taylor Fritz insists that he doesn’t deserve to be in the Wimbledon semifinals, even in the wake of Rafael Nadal’s withdrawal from competition due to injury.
Fritz led Nadal two sets to one during Wednesday’s quarterfinal match, but the 22-time Grand Slam winner stormed back. Nadal captured the final two sets en route to a dramatic comeback victory.
Yet, on Thursday, Nadal officially pulled out of the tournament due to an abdominal injury, granting Nick Kyrgios — his would-be opponent — a free pass into the finals.
When social media users suggested that Fritz be allowed to take Nadal’s place, the 24-year-old American quickly refuted the idea.
“Nah not looking for handouts,” Fritz, the World No. 14, wrote on Instagram. “If I couldn’t beat him then I don’t deserve to be in (the) semis… simple as that.”
Nadal, 36, took a medical timeout halfway through his match with Fritz and was in obvious pain, but was able to continue, winning the final two sets, 7-5, 7-6 (10-4).
“(This) probably hurts more than any loss I’ve ever had,” Fritz said after the match. “I feel confident saying this is number one because literally after the match was over, I was sitting there and I felt like crying, like I wanted to cry. I’ve never felt like that ever after a loss. I’ve never felt like I could cry after a loss. Just that’s telling enough to know that this one hurt more than any other one has hurt before.”
Nadal’s triumph took its toll on the Spaniard, ending his run on the grass courts and his chance to win the first men’s Grand Slam in 53 years after he conquered at the Australian and French Open. Nadal is dealing with a tear in his abdomen that is causing significant pain.
“I made my decision because I believe I can’t win two matches,” Nadal said in his press conference Thursday afternoon. “I don’t want to go out there and not be competitive enough to play at the level I need to to achieve my goal.”
Kyrgios will face the winner of the Novak Djokovic-Cameron Norrie semifinal in the championship on Sunday.