Rafael Nadal’s team implored him to retire after the Spaniard had treatment on an abdominal issue in the second set of his thrilling quarter-final win against Taylor Fritz at Wimbledon on Wednesday. With an unbeaten record at major tournaments in 2022 on the line and just three retirements in his past decade on Tour, however, that decision was never going to sit well with the two-time champion.

“They told me I needed to retire from the match,” said Nadal in his post-match press conference after his dramatic 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(10-4) win. “For me it was tough to retire in the middle of the match. [It was] not easy, even if I had that idea for such a long time.

“I did it a couple of times in my tennis career. It’s something that I hate to do. So, I just kept trying, and that’s it.”

Clearly in discomfort and unable to serve at full power on Centre Court, Nadal showcased his trademark resilience to rally and clinch a stunning four-hour, 20-minute victory. He admitted that it was less the medical time-out and more his desire to see things through to the end that enabled him to carry on.

“They can’t do much [in the medical time-out], honestly,” said the 36-year-old. “The doctor came, gave me some anti-inflammatories and analgesic. The physio just tried to relax the muscle there a little bit, but it’s difficult. Nothing can be fixed when you have a thing like this. That’s it.

“I just wanted to give myself a chance. [It is] not easy to leave the tournament, not easy to leave Wimbledon, even if the pain was hard.”

It is the second time in the space of four months that Nadal was facing Fritz carrying an injury. The 92-time tour-level titlist played with a fractured rib in his championship match defeat to the American at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells in March. Just as on that occasion, his determination to see things through was strong, regardless of the eventual outcome of the match.

“I wanted to finish,” said Nadal. “Doesn’t matter. I prefer to win with victory or defeat. That’s what I did, I fought. I’m proud of the fighting spirit and the way that I managed to be competitive under those conditions.”

Any potential retirement would not only have cost Nadal his shot at a third Wimbledon crown. The Spaniard is also chasing a historic Grand Slam after he won the Australian Open in January and Roland Garros in June. That goal will be put to the test again in a semi-final clash with Nick Kyrgios, and Nadal was not jumping to any conclusions about his fitness for Friday’s match.

“Tomorrow I‘m going to have some more tests… I had these feelings for a couple of days. Without a doubt, today was the worst day. There has been an important increase of pain and limitation.

“I need to know different opinions and I need to check everything the proper way. That is something more important than winning Wimbledon, that is health. Let’s see how this goes.”

Taylor Fritz came close to the biggest win of his career on Wednesday at Wimbledon against Rafael Nadal. But instead of advancing to his first major semi-final, the American lost against the 22-time major winner in a final-set tie-break and walked off court shattered.

“It was a tough match. I think I did some things well and some things not as good. In the end he was just really, really, really good,” Fritz said. “Certain parts of the match I felt like maybe I kind of just needed to come up with more, do more. I left a lot up to him, and he delivered. It was a great match. Honestly, probably hurts more than any loss I’ve ever had.”

The 24-year-old showed his dismay as he walked to the net to shake hands with Nadal, and took a moment at his chair before leaving the court.

“After the match was over, I was sitting there and I felt like crying, like I wanted to cry,” Fritz said. “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’s hurt before.”

The good news for Fritz is that he pushed the two-time Wimbledon champion to the absolute limits in his first major quarter-final. Although he was unable to claw past the Spaniard, Fritz showed he is capable of testing the best in the sport on tennis’ biggest stages.

“Taking a step back, it’s nice. I made my first quarter-final. I’m moving in the right direction,” Fritz said. “I don’t know. I would look at my form and how I feel like I’ve been playing and my draw, and I would expect myself to make the quarter-finals. It’s a great achievement, I’m really happy.

“I really, really wanted this match. So it’s tough right now I guess to look at the bright side of things because I really, really wanted this one.”

Earlier this year, Fritz defeated Nadal in the BNP Paribas Open final to lift his first ATP Masters 1000 trophy. The American carried confidence from that victory into their clash at SW19, but was unable to replicate the result.

“At Indian Wells I truly believed that I could win, and I truly believed that I could beat him. The same goes for today. It’s kind of just the attitude you have to have,” Fritz said. “These guys, they’re so good at Slams. But a lot of beating them is also kind of beating the name you’re playing against, just having that belief that you can do it.

“I think that’s a big hurdle to get over. I think that’s something that has definitely changed for me more recently, is that I do believe they’re beatable. But it still takes a hell of an effort to be able to beat them.”

Rafael Nadal’s 2022 Grand Slam story served up another dramatic chapter on Wednesday at Wimbledon, where the Spaniard held off a high-powered performance from Taylor Fritz to reach the semi-finals in London.

The 22-time major champion Nadal left the court for a medical timeout in the second set and appeared to be struggling with an abdominal issue midway through the pair’s four-hour, 20-minute quarter-final encounter. Yet the second seed showcased trademark resilience, raising his aggression to keep points short and producing a high-class deciding-set tie-break to seal a 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(10-4) victory.

“It was a tough afternoon against a great player,” said Nadal in his on-court interview. “All the credit to Taylor, he has been playing great during the whole season. From my personal side, it was not an easy match at all, so I’m just very happy to be in the semi-finals.

“The body in general is fine. In the abdominal [area] it is not going well, being honest. I had to find a way to serve a little bit differently, for a lot of moments I was thinking maybe I would not be able to finish the match, but I don’t know. The court, the energy [helped me].”

Nadal, who won the Australian Open in January and Roland Garros in June, is seeking to keep his bid for the 2022 Grand Slam alive at the grass-court major. His next assignment in London is a semi-final with Nick Kyrgios, after the Australian was a 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(5) winner in his quarter-final matchup against Cristian Garin.

“I hope to be ready to play,” said Nadal. “Nick is a great player on all surfaces, but especially here on grass. He’s having a great grass-court season and it’s going to be a big challenge. I need to be at 100% to keep having chances and that’s what I am going to try to do.”

Fritz reeled off five games in a row from 1-3 to clinch the first set as Nadal’s physical struggles undermined what had been a bright start from the Spaniard on Centre Court. Yet despite Nadal still appearing in discomfort, particularly when serving, after his medical time-out at 4-3 in the second set, the second seed stayed aggressive to break Fritz’s serve twice and level the match.

Fritz, bidding to become the youngest American man to reach the semi-finals at Wimbledon since Andy Roddick in 2005, looked to have regained control of the match after he capitalised on some uncharacteristic Nadal errors to break twice and ease to the third set. More solid groundstrokes earned him another break in the opening game of the fourth, but the Spaniard’s tactic of going for his shots continued to pay off as he came out on top in a topsy-turvy fourth set that featured five breaks of serve.

The match remained in the balance throughout an engrossing final set, but it was Nadal who raised his game under the pressure of the deciding-set tie-break. He raced to a 5/0 lead that proved unassailable, sealing a marathon win to avenge his loss to Fritz in the BNP Paribas Open final in Indian Wells in March.