Rafael Nadal must now be a doubt for the French Open, which starts later this month (AP)
Defending champion Rafael Nadal was hampered by a foot injury as his bid for a record-extending 11th Italian Open crown was ended by a three-set defeat to Denis Shapovalov.
Nadal’s movement was severely compromised towards the end of this last-16 encounter in Rome by a chronic issue which the Spaniard feared as recently as December would end his glittering career.
With the French Open set to begin on May 22, doubts will increase over whether Nadal will even make it to Paris and, if he does, whether he can be competitive having just returned to action after a broken rib.
“I had my foot again with a lot of pain, and that’s it,” a forlorn Nadal said after a 1-6 7-5 6-2 defeat. “(The pain) is sometimes more, sometimes less. Today was crazy.
“I am not injured. I am a player living with an injury. That’s it. (This) is nothing new. It’s something that is there.
“Unfortunately my day-by-day is difficult, honestly. Even like this, I am trying hard. Of course, it’s difficult for me to accept the situation sometimes.
“What can happen in the next couple of days, I don’t know. What can happen in one week, I really don’t know now. It’s the time to accept the situation and fight. That’s it.”
There were few concerns for Nadal early on as he won the first set at a canter and then rallied from 4-1 down in the second to level at 4-4, but some uncharacteristic errors were creeping in.
Nadal saw off Shapovalov at the same stage of this tournament 12 months ago, saving two match points along the way having been a set and a break down, but this time it was the Canadian who rallied.
Nadal faltered in the 12th game of the second set as Shapovalov forced a decider, where it became increasingly apparent that the third seed was struggling physically.
Shapovalov won the last four games with minimal resistance to prevail in two hours and 38 minutes and the 13th seed can now look forward to a quarter-final clash against Norway’s Casper Ruud, seeded fifth.
There were no such problems for world number one and reigning French Open champion Novak Djokovic, who claimed a 20th win from 26 meetings against Stan Wawrinka to reach the quarter-finals.
Wawrinka secured his first victories for more than a year following foot surgery to reach the third round but looked weary from the start and was unable to trouble Djokovic, who eased to a 6-2 6-2 victory.
“He’s not physically where he wants to be, but, nevertheless, he’s Stan Wawrinka, he can hurt you if you give him time and I managed to do well I think,” Djokovic said in his on-court interview.
I am not injured. I am a player living with an injury
Rafael Nadal
In the last eight Djokovic will contest a first match against eighth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who saw off Marcos Giron 6-3 6-2.
Second seed Alexander Zverev defeated Alex De Minaur 6-3 7-6 (5), while Stefanos Tsitsipas fought back from a set down to see off Karen Khachanov 4-6 6-0 6-3 and will next meet home hope Jannik Sinner.
In the women’s event, defending champion Iga Swiatek recovered from a poor start to defeat Victoria Azarenka and reach the quarter-finals.
The world number one, who is bidding for a fifth consecutive title, began the match with a slew of errors and trailed 3-0 but battled back to claim a 6-4 6-1 victory.
The first set alone took 79 minutes, with Swiatek saving eight of the 11 break points she faced, but the Pole found her form in the second to move through to an intriguing clash with Bianca Andreescu.
Swiatek said: “For sure I didn’t start well and everybody could see that. I’m really happy with the way I reacted and how I improved in the first set.”
Former US Open champion Andreescu defeated Croatian Petra Martic 6-4 6-4, while third seed Aryna Sabalenka impressed in a 6-1 6-4 win over Madrid finalist Jessica Pegula.
WWE always tells fans that the card is subject to change so it’s always possible that someone who is advertised for a show might not actually appear.
When WWE sent word out about Money In The Bank heading to Allegiant Stadium, the home of the Las Vegas Raiders, several major names were advertised. SmackDown Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, Charlotte Flair, Bobby Lashley, and WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns were all advertised to appear but that is no longer the case.
The original ad listed Reigns, Lesnar, Rousey, Lashley, Flair, Becky Lynch, Drew McIntyre, and Bianca Belair. The new ad features Belair, Matt Riddle, Cody Rhodes, The Miz, Rhea Ripley, The Street Profits, and Drew McIntyre.
Flair is getting married soon and she is taking time off to be with her husband Andrade El Idolo. Rousey being pulled is surprising since she is looked at as a draw and Reigns is also surprising because, as reported in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, there were three major matches planned for him this summer. Reigns was reportedly scheduled for matches against Riddle, Randy Orton, and Drew McIntyre. One of those matches may have to wait until a later date if Reigns doesn’t appear at MITB.
After missing 31 months with two major lower leg injuries, Thompson is understandably excited to be back on the big stage. If the Warriors can close out the Mavericks in Game 5, the three-time NBA champion can shimmy all night long.
Dub Nation is certainly enjoying the Warriors’ Western Conference finals performance against the Dallas Mavericks, but they might be having just as much fun getting into it with Charles Barkley ahead of home games.
Now, his fellow TNT analysts are joining in on the fun.
Before Game 5 of the series at Chase Center on Thursday, Shaquille O’Neal helped the crowd poke fun at his “Inside the NBA” co-host, who has been subjected to “Chuck you suck” chants whenever he steps foot near Thrive City.
With his microphone in hand as a makeshift baton, O’Neal honked on a Golden State-colored plastic horn as he encouraged the Barkley chant from the “Inside the NBA” outdoor set.
In another clip, O’Neal can be seen pumping his fist along to the chant and encouraging the crowd to yell even louder.
Along with O’Neal’s antics, Kenny Smith laughed that he was seated next to San Francisco’s “Public Enemy No. 1” during the pregame show — a title well-earned after Barkley called the city “hell” and has openly rooted against the Warriors throughout the West finals.
And after picking the Mavericks to advance to the NBA Finals over Golden State, Barkley on Thursday picked the Boston Celtics to win the championship. The Celtics currently hold a three-games-to-two lead over the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals.
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