Nadal feels the Miami heat in exit
Print Edition
RAFAEL Nadal slumped in a changeover chair, the blood pressure gauge strapped to his mighty left arm serving as a scoreboard.
He was on the verge of defeat, and a few points later he retired from a match for the first time in six years.
Nadal faded in the subtropical heat and conceded after falling behind in the third set of his opening match on Saturday at the Miami Open in Key Biscayne against Damir Dzumhur.
The No. 5-seeded Nadal trailed 6-2, 4-6, 0-3 when he called it quits after losing a point to fall behind 15-30. He had earlier consulted with a trainer between games three times, and had his blood pressure checked.
Nadal said he started feeling badly at the end of the first set. “It was getting worse and worse and worse,” the Spaniard said. “I get a little bit scared — too dizzy. I felt I was not safe, so I decided to go. I wanted to finish the match, but I seriously couldn’t.”
His departure left the draw without three of the five highest-seeded men. No. 4 Stan Wawrinka lost to Andrey Kuznetsov 4-6, 3-6, and No. 3 Roger Federer withdrew on Friday because of a stomach virus.
In the night session, No. 2 Andy Murray won his opening match against Denis Istomin, 6-3, 7-5.
Eight-time champion Serena Williams avoided the upset bug and seemed unfazed by the weather. The South Floridian earned her 20th consecutive victory at Key Biscayne and reached the fourth round by beating Zarina Diyas 7-5, 6-3.
“I live down the street, and I’m used to these conditions,” she said. “Even though it was a little humid, I’m used to it and I love this weather.”
Nadal’s match lasted less than two hours, but the temperature approached 90 degrees and was even higher on the sunbaked stadium hardcourt.
Nadal said he felt fine before the match and wasn’t sure whether he was contracting an illness. “Hopefully it’s just the extreme conditions,” he said. “It’s tough for me, because I felt I was playing well. It’s a hard accident. That’s life.”
The 14-time grand slam champion hasn’t won a tournament since August. But it had been 443 matches since he retired — in the 2010 Australian Open quarterfinals against Murray. Key Biscayne remains one of the biggest tournaments Nadal has never won. He’s 0-4 in finals.
Dzumhur is a 23-year-old Bosnian who was a child actor before he decided to focus on tennis. Ranked 94th, he rallied with a variety of tactics, including half a dozen drop shots for winners and an occasional serve and volley.
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