WIMBLEDON, ENGLAND (AP) - Defending champion Rafael Nadal completed an hour-long practice session Tuesday, hours after announcing he would play in the Wimbledon quarterfinals against Mardy Fish.
“He will be 100 percent. Everything’s fine,” said Toni Nadal, his coach and uncle.
Nadal, a two-time champion at the All England Club, hurt his left foot in the first set of Monday’s fourth-round win over Juan Martin del Potro. He twice called for a trainer during the set but still managed to win 7-6 (6), 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4.
After the match, he went to a London hospital for an MRI exam, but the results were negative.
Nadal arrived for practice more than an hour later than scheduled Tuesday afternoon, but he beat the showers and hit for 1 hour, 7 minutes with 16-year-old British junior Evan Hoyt.
Nadal did not move around the court much, but his uncle said that was because of the slippery conditions, not the injury.
“We couldn’t do much today because the court was quite damp and it was dangerous, but everything’s fine,” Toni Nadal said. “For tomorrow, there will be no problem.”
Ignacio Munoz, a doctor with the Spanish Tennis Federation, said the MRI scan had showed some swelling around the peroneal tendon in his ankle but “no serious injury in the bone or the ligaments.” He said there was no risk in Nadal playing on Wednesday.
Munoz said Nadal had been particularly worried during Monday’s match because he hurt the same ankle several years earlier.
“He was afraid it could be something similar so he was quite afraid during the match,” Munoz said. “That’s the reason we did an MRI after the match.”
Nadal said after his win over Del Potro that he felt something “crush” in his left foot, making him worry that it might be broken. He said he even contemplated retiring from the match.
Nadal will play Fish in the second quarterfinal match on Court 1 on Wednesday. Toni said it was the worst possible scheduling for Nadal because of possible rain delays.
“It’s fine to play on Court 1,” Toni Nadal said. “It’s logical that (Andy) Murray plays on Centre. What I’m saying is I would prefer the first match probably, if I could choose, but no problem.”
Nadal is 30-2 at Wimbledon since the start of the 2006 tournament. He lost to Roger Federer that year and the next in the final, but then beat the Swiss in the 2008 championship match. Nadal was unable to defend his title in 2009 because of injury, but he won again in 2010.
The top-ranked Spaniard also won his sixth French Open title this month, equaling Bjorn Borg’s record. Overall, Nadal has won 10 major titles, including one at the Australian Open and one at the U.S. Open.
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