Alexander Zeverev says the injury he suffered in his Roland-Garros semi-final against Rafael Nadal is “very serious.”
Zverev was down a set and in the middle of a competitive second frame when he turned his ankle chasing down a ball and collapsed on the clay in agony.
Zverev was helped up by a trainer, then taken away from the court in a wheelchair. Minutes later, he came back out onto Court Philippe Chatrier on crutches, his right shoe removed, and conceded the match, unable to continue.
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After the match, Zverev posted an update on his Instagram story, saying the injury seems to be “very serious”.
“Very difficult moment for me today on the court,” he said. “Obviously, a fantastic match until what happened. Looks like I have a very serious injury, but the medical team— the doctors are still checking on it and will keep you updated. Will let you know as soon as we know more.”
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Replays of Zverev’s incident showed that his foot got caught on the clay surface before buckling under his body.
Tennis great Chris Evert suggested a “clump of clay” could have caused Zverev’s horrific injury.
“It could have been a clump of clay, who knows? Towards the corners where they don’t move as much sometimes you can get clumps of clay just like on grass where it is more slick in the corners,” she told Eurosport
“When you heard those cries you knew it was serious and you knew it was serious. My mind wandered to that big summer of Wimbledon and US Open and whether he is going to be able to play or will he miss those.
“The thing with Zverev is that he was really coming into his own, he was playing so well this whole tournament, the wins he had – what about Alcaraz, what a big win for him. He had chances in the first set against Rafa, Rafa looked a little bit tired which is understandable.
The injury comes at the worst time for Zverev, with the German star set to soar to No.2 in the world rankings and be the No.1 seed at Wimbledon with Daniil Medvedev banned.
The incident gifted Nadal his 14th French Open final, and he now has a chance to win his 22nd major overall in the final against Casper Ruud.
“Hopefully he can go all the way and make some more history,” Zverev added.
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