World No.2, Rafael Nadal came from a set down to defeat Fabio Fognini 2-6, 6-1, 6-2 and book a place in the semifinals of the Montreal Open 2019.
Fabio Fognini won their most recent encounter at the Monte-Carlo Masters in April 2019. He made a rapid start in the opening set in Montreal, breaking Nadal twice to claim the set 6-2. However, the Italian dropped his level as he could manage to win only 3 games in the next two sets.
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After the fourth game of the final set, Fognini took a medical timeout and received treatment on his foot. Later, the 32-year-old told Nadal at the end of the match that he was dealing with a foot injury.
In the post-match press conference, Rafael Nadal revealed the net chatter between the two. During their chat at the net, the Spaniard discovered that Fabio Fognini is struggling with an injury similar to him. According to the reports, Fabio Fognini will undergo surgery on his foot in October and Nadal suggested him to do the surgery.
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”I asked Fabio what’s going on in his foot because I saw him asking for treatment. He told me about foot pain, which seemed similar to something I have had before, so I was trying to share my experience and what I did then to make it better. I had a surgery on that it’s a very quick recovery. Don’t worry”, said Nadal.
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The 18-time Grand Slam champion also shared his experience with Fognini. He said, “Yeah, he was telling me what’s going on. Something that I experienced before. I just tried to tell him about my experience.”
“But I am no one to say what he has or not. If you want to know, better ask him. But I just tried to give him a quote about how I went through that process that he’s having,” the Spaniard further added.