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Tennis fans were already upset with Rafael Nadal announcing his withdrawal from the 2023 French Open on Thursday, May 18. They were angered further when a journalist brought Nick Kyrgios into the equation.
A failure to recover from a hip injury that he picked up at the Australian Open in January forced Nadal to withdraw from his favorite and most successful tournament - Roland Garros - for the first time since 2004.
In a press conference, the 14-time French Open champion remarked that 2024 would be his final season on the professional tour and that he wanted to bow out on his terms.
Kyrgios, on the other hand, is yet to play a tour-level singles match since the Japan Open in October 2022. A knee injury kept him on the sidelines for months. As he was about to regain his fitness, the Australian suffered a cut on his foot when a man held his mother at gunpoint before stealing his car in Canberra a few days ago.
Before Nadal's press conference, journalist Jon Wertheim took to social media to share Kyrgios' story and wrote:
"Even if today’s Nadal announcement goes as planned, there will be a more recent Major finalist to miss @rolandgarros."
Fans were infuriated upon seeing the comparison between Nadal and Kyrgios, who hasn't played in the French Open since 2017. Moreover, the Australian's best result at Roland Garros is a third-round appearance.
"So ridiculous trying to equate the two somehow. Nadal is one of the legends of this sport. NK is toxic bully who only got to a GS final because a bunch of top players were banned from playing the tournament & he was gifted a walkover in the SF," a fan tweeted.
"The level of delusion is actually insane. you rep a player that skips an entire surface bc it exposes their lack of proper point construction, tennis IQ and fitness. what the fuck are you on about," a user wrote.
"You could have perfectly mentioned kyrgios's story and not included Nadal's name especially in a day when many fans will pour out emotions for this one man," another tweet read.
Here are some more reactions:
Rafael Nadal hopes to win titles next year
In his press conference, Rafael Nadal vowed to make a comeback and compete for the biggest titles next year. The Spaniard made it clear that he didn't want to say goodbye to tennis outside of the court.
“I’ve worked hard enough throughout my career for my end not to be in a press conference,” he said. "I’m going to try to make my last year not just a party, I'm going to try to compete at the highest level, give myself the option to try to compete and win tournaments on this clay tour."
Nadal has struggled with numerous injuries since winning the 2022 French Open and has a 1-3 record this year.
What is the foot injury that has troubled Rafael Nadal over the years? Check here
