Injury forces Nadal to end bid
Kerber rounds into 2016 form to oust American Keys in quarters
MELBOURNE, Australia — One point after his medical timeout in the fourth set, Rafael Nadal went to the rear of the court to squat and do a kneeraise, trying to stretch out his injured right leg.
Three games later, Nadal had to delay Marin Cilic’s serve while trying to walk out the pain at the start of the fifth set.
After limping and wincing through two more games, and after failing to fend off a sixth break point, the 16-time major champion was out of the Australian Open.
The sixth-seeded Cilic advanced to his first semifinal in Australia since 2010 with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 2-0 victory Tuesday. He will next play 49thranked Kyle Edmund, who beat third-ranked Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal for the first time.
“Tough moments — not (for) the first time here,” Nadal said. “I’m a positive person, but today is an opportunity lost to be in a semifinal for a Grand Slam and fight for an important title for me. It’s really tough to accept.”
Injuries to star players dominated headlines before the tournament, greatly aiding Hyeon Chung’s historic run through the draw.
Chung, 21, beat Tennys Sandgren 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in Wednesday’s quarterfinals to become the first Korean player to reach the semifinals of a Grand Slam. Sandgren had only won two ATP Tour-level matches in his career before his run to the quarters.
There are limits to human endurance, and Nadal found his Tuesday.
“Somebody who is running the tour should think (a) little bit about what’s going on. Too many people getting injured,” said Nadal. “I don’t know if they have to think a little bit about the health of the players. I don’t know if we keep playing in this very, very hard surfaces what’s going to happen in the future with our lives.”
Nadal said the timing and the number of tournaments on the schedule and the proliferation of hardcourts are concerns. Other players have expressed similar views.
Six service breaks
On the women’s side, Angelique Kerber proved she is in 2016 vintage form.
Kerber, 30, routed U.S. Open finalist Madison Keys 6-1, 6-2 on Wednesday to reach the semifinals of the tournament in which she kicked off her career-best season in 2016 with a victory over Serena Williams in the final.
She also won the U.S. Open and finished that year with the No. 1 ranking. But she was upset in the first round at Melbourne Park last year, and her ranking dropped into the 20s.
Kerber won the Sydney International to prepare for the first major of the year, then won her first three rounds at Melbourne Park in straight sets.
“I’m just trying to enjoy myself again on court,” Kerber said.
Against No. 17-seeded Keys, Kerber won the first four games to take control of the quarterfinal — her first at a major since the 2016 U.S. Open. Keys held in the fifth game of the first set, but Kerber went on another roll to lead 3-0 in the second set.
Keys slowed the momentum by holding and then getting her first service break of the match, but Kerber responded quickly to finish it off in 51 minutes. She broke Keys six times in total in the match and now has a 7-1 record again the American.
Meanwhile, Cilic against Edmund was an unlikely pairing on the top half of the men’s draw. Edmund had never played in a major quarterfinal, had never won five consecutive matches at tour level, had lost both of his previous matches against Dimitrov and had never beaten a top-five player.
He checked all those boxes on Rod Laver Arena.
“I am loving it right now, just the way I’m playing,” Edmund said. “My first Grand Slam semifinal. First time I played on one of the biggest courts in the world. To beat a quality of player like Grigor. They’re great feelings.”
Leg pain intensifies
Nadal left dejected. It was the second time he had had to retire during an Australian Open quarterfinal — the previous time was against Murray in 2010.
He said he felt muscle pain in his upper right leg in the third set against Cilic but played through it. In the fourth set, chasing a drop shot, he felt the pain get worse “but didn’t realize how bad.”
He had an injury timeout at 4-1 down in the fourth set, and another at the end of the set.
Nadal said he would have medical scans Wednesday to determine the exact location and extent of the injury, which he could only describe as being high on his right leg but not in the hip.
Nadal had a delayed start to the season because of an injured right knee but appeared to be in good form through the first four rounds. He now hasn’t won back-to-back Australian Open quarterfinal matches since 2008 and ’09, the year he won his only Australian title.
“Unbelievable performance from both of us and really unfortunate for Rafa,” said Cilic, who had only beaten Nadal once in their previous six matches.