Rafael Nadal ‘worried’ after shortness of breath and doesn’t know when he will return

Rafael Nadal was struggling to breathe after suffering a chest injury at the BNP Paribas Open and the Spaniard lost his first match of 2022 in the final to Taylor Fritz

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Rafael Nadal stops the match so the mother can find the child

Rafael Nadal said he was having trouble breathing after the injury he sustained Indian Wells champion. The Spaniard’s unbeaten streak in 2022 was broken in the final by Taylor Fritz, who lost 6-3, 7-6 (5).

The 24-year-old became the first American to win the title since Andre Agassi in 2001. Nadal, who really struggled throughout his campaign in the California desert, appeared to pinch a pectoral muscle in his semi-final against Carlos Alcaraz.

It started to cause problems for him in the final as he was dominated by Fritz in the first set. After a lengthy medical time-out at the end of the set, Nadal returned stronger and struggled through the pain but couldn’t turn the tables and had to be beaten in a final for the first time in three years.

Then the 35-year-old spoke about his complaints, which also caused him breathing problems. “It’s difficult for me to breathe. When I try to breathe, it hurts and it’s very uncomfortable,” Nadal said.

“When I breathe, when I move, it’s like a needle in here all the time. I get a little dizzy because it hurts. It’s a kind of pain that limits me a lot. It’s not just about pain, I don’t feel very good because it affects my breathing.

“Honestly, I’m sad because I couldn’t compete. What worries me now is what is going on there, what I need to do now to recover and how long it will take.”

Fritz was battling an injury himself, having picked up an ankle problem in his semifinal match against Andrey Rublev. The new world No. 13 was even advised to withdraw from the final but chose to fight through the pain, which he did in style.

“I can’t even begin to describe how ridiculous it is to play like I could play today, I’ve never experienced pain like this before the game,” said Fritz. “I took a few steps and screamed. I tried to play hard and we worked a lot before the game.

“I was really upset, basically I almost cried because I thought I had to retire. I went through a roller coaster of emotions and suddenly I was very happy because I thought maybe I could play but it didn’t affect me. It’s one of those childhood dreams you don’t even think will come true.”