"You never were and you never will be thought of in the same breath as Rafael Nadal, it's not a fight you'd want to fight bro" - Tennis fans rebuke Fabio Fognini for questioning Spaniard's injury claims

Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz played a stunning quarterfinal match on Wednesday that went the distance. The Spaniard fought an abdominal injury and came out on top, beating the World No. 14 American to reach the 2022 Wimbledon semifinals.

Although the tennis world has not been able to stop showering love and praise on the 22-time Grand Slam champion for his willpower and fighting spirit, Fabio Fognini suggests that Nadal's injury claim might have been just another trick. The Italian posted a news headline on social media and highlighted 'being injured', urging people not to believe everything they read.

"Rafael Nadal's sporting milestone who, despite being injured, advances to the semi-finals after winning the fifth-set super tiebreak against Taylor Fritz," the headline read.

"For sure. Guys stop believe in what you read. Please," Fognini wrote in his Instagram story.

Tennis fans in huge numbers immediately came to Nadal's defence and hit back at Fognini for his comments.

"So, Nadal thought it was a good winning strategy to slow down his serves for most of the match? There was an hour stretch where some of his first serves were in the mid 90s & 2nd serves were in the 80s. When was the last time Rafa did that? When he was 13 years old?" one fan said.

"No one will remember you in a few years time @fabiofogna. Let it go bro. You never were and you never will be thought of in the same breath as Rafael Nadal. It's not a fight you'd want to fight bro," a fan tweeted.

"Rafa was visibly worried, he did not enjoy his victory as usual and you could see during the interview he was not there in his thoughts and his eyes betrayed real concern. Watching Rafa for +20 yrs now - yes, he is not Ok," a tweet read.

"It’s absolutely ridiculous to think Rafa would fake an injury in a GRAND SLAM Qf. I mean, this guy can definitely beat a player like Fritz even if he’s is two sets down!. Why would he fake an injury and deliberately slow down his serve. Cmon," another fan wrote.

"Why would he fake an injury against Fritz though. He didn’t do it vs Medvedev in the final. You think he is afraid of Taylor? Why would he give himself less chance to win and serve at 99mph. He’s done too much for people to question his motives," another fan tweeted.

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Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz won 168 points each

Taylor Fritz and Rafael Nadal after their quarterfinal clash.

World No. 4 Rafael Nadal booked his spot in the Wimbledon semifinals on Wednesday by producing one of the best matches this year. The second seed beat Taylor Fritz in a thrilling five-set match, where either of the two players could have won.

Since the grass-court Major kicked off last week, fans have been curious about the athletic tapes in Nadal's abdominal area. Although he refused to comment after his fourth-round match, the unknown issue seemed to trouble the Spaniard yesterday to the extent that his family members seemingly gestured at him to retire mid-match when he asked for a medical timeout in the second set.

As the match progressed, Nadal's on-court movement kept getting worse, forcing him to mostly stand and deliver, and shorten the points. His serve seemed to take a hit as well, with the speed reduced by 15 to 20 mph. He adjusted his game according to his limitations and ultimately defeated Fritz 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(4) in four hours and 20 minutes.

It was one of those rare occasions where the player with fewer unforced errors and more break points lost the match.

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