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Indian Wells, March 17
Rafael Nadal withdrew from the Indian Wells tournament on Saturday with a knee injury, shortly before his eagerly-awaited semifinal clash with great rival Roger Federer.
Federer, bidding for his 101st career title and a record sixth Indian Wells crown, received a walkover into the final, where he will play Dominic Thiem, a 7-6(3) 6-7(3) 6-4 victor over Milos Raonic in Saturday’s only semifinal. Federer’s scheduled meeting with Nadal would have been the 39th in their long rivalry and the first since 2017.
“I warmed up today and I felt that my knee was not good to compete at the level I needed to compete in semi-final,” Spain’s Nadal said in a statement. “It’s tough for me to accept all these things that I’m going through in my career.”
Nadal said he would now return home to Mallorca and would not play in the upcoming Miami Open. He hopes to be ready for the Monte Carlo Masters, which begins on April 14. It was just the fifth time in Nadal’s career that he had conceded a walkover, and the first to Federer.
“I am obviously excited to be in the finals, but not this way,” said the 37-year-old Federer. “We’ve had so many epic battles and I know now that every one we have could be our last. Was this our last chance? I hope not.” — Reuters