This was the shocking injury suffered by Alexander Zverev in the Roland Garros semi-final against Rafael Nadal

Alexander Zverev faced a unique opportunity. Not only could he become the third man to beat Rafael Nadal on clay at Roland Garros behind Robin Soderling and Novak Djokovic – who had done it twice – but he could also advance to the Paris Grand Slam final and stay one step away from the number. one in the world. He had missed the first set in an unprecedented tiebreak and was struggling to finish the second when he suffered a shocking sprained right ankle. And the novel became a drama.

It was when he ran to the right that he tried to skate to try to overtake the Spaniard who had launched an approach to close the point on the net. However, the German got his foot stuck and as he threw the ball into the double area he started basking in pain. Tears were seen falling on his face and a gesture of not being able to believe what had happened to him. He was taken away in a wheelchair and returned to Philippe Chatrier only on crutches to finish the game. Her bare right ankle was extremely swollen.

Yes, Nadal has moved on to another Roland Garros final and is heading for the 14th Musketeers Trophy and his 22nd Grand Slam. And Zverev can’t believe his bad luck. The severity of the injury will need to be seen. “I’m very sad for him. He was playing an incredible game. And he was fighting for his first Grand Slam. He had a lot of bad luck. But I’m sure he will bounce back and win more than one,” Nadal released after the match. ended with 7-6 (8), 6-6 and abandonment.

photo of the injury