Rafael Nadal nicks nose by own racquet in comeback win

PTI

New York, September 2

Rafael Nadal cut himself on the bridge of his nose with his own racquet when it ricocheted off the court on the follow-through from a shot, leaving himself bloodied and dizzy during his second-round victory at the US Open.

Play was delayed for about five minutes during a medical timeout in the fourth set of what would become a 2-6 6-4 6-2 6-1 win against Fabio Fognini at Arthur Ashe Stadium in a match that began Thursday night and finished after midnight on Friday.

It made for a bizarre, and briefly scary scene, as Nadal immediately grimaced, dropped his racquet, put a palm to his face and then put both hands on his head. At least Nadal could joke about it afterwards during his on-court interview.

Asked whether he’d ever had that happen before, he mustered a chuckle and replied: “With a golf club but not with a tennis racket.”

How was he feeling? “Well, just a little bit dizzy at the beginning,” said Nadal, who has won four of his 22 Grand Slam titles at the US Open, most recently in 2019, the last time he entered the hardcourt tournament.

The episode came on the first point of the game with Nadal leading 3-0 in the fourth set and clearly in command after ceding the opening set for the second match in a row this week.

Williams sisters fall

Serena and Venus Williams traded fist bumps or palm slaps and chatted between points. They smiled while conversing in their seats at changeovers. When their first doubles match together in 4four-and-a-half years ended with a loss on Thursday night, the siblings hugged each other, then left the court to a standing ovation. The Williams sisters were eliminated by the Czech pair of Lucie Hradecka and Linda Noskova 7-6(5) 6-4. — AP

Day 4: highlights

HURKACZ shocked

Belarusian Ilya Ivashka stunned eighth seed Hubert Hurkacz 6-4 4-6 7-6(5) 6-3 to reach the third round, where he will meet Lorenzo Musetti of Italy.

K for killer duo

Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis, the Australian Open doubles champions, advanced to the second round after recovering from a set down to clinch a 4-6 6-3 6-4 victory over Hugo Gaston and Lorenzo Musetti.

COLLINS TOO GOOD

Australian Open runner-up Danielle Collins eased into the third round with a commanding 6-2 7-5 win over Spain’s Cristina Bucsa. Up next for the American is Frenchwoman Alize Cornet.

Contrasting wins

Sixth seed Aryna Sabalenka roared back from 5-1 down in the second set and saved two match points along the way to overcome veteran Kaia Kanepi 2-6 7-6(8) 6-4. Former finalist Karolina Pliskova also booked her place in the third round with a comfortable 6-3 6-2 win over fellow Marie Bouzkova.

ALCARAZ breaks sweat

Third seed Carlos Alcaraz was made to sweat in the third set but he came out on top in his second round match against Argentine Federico Coria, winning 6-2 6-1 7-5 to progress.

Bopanna, Ramanathan sent packing

New York: Veteran Indian tennis player Rohan Bopanna and Ramkumar Ramanathan made early exits from their respective events. While Bopanna lost both his opening-round matches in the men’s doubles and mixed doubles on Thursday, Ramanathan bowed out in the men’s doubles. Bopanna and his Dutch partner Matwe Middelkoop were stunned by Andrea Vavassori and Lorenzo Sonego 6-7(2) 2-6. Bopanna and Yang Zhaoxuan lost 5-7 5-7 to Max Purcell and Gabriela Dabrowski in the mixed doubles. Ramanathan and Nikola Cacic lost 4-6 4-6 to Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini.

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