Matteo Arnaldi heartbreakingly confirmed that he would not be able to take part in his Roland Garros semi-final against compatriot Flavio Cobolli.
After Alexander Zverev confirmed his place in the final by defeating Jakub Mensik, Cobolli and Arnaldi were expected to battle it out for the final spot.
With just minutes to go before the match was set to take place, Arnaldi confirmed that he would not be able to take part in his first Grand Slam semi-final.
In a press conference following the announcement, Arnaldi said: “It’s difficult to be here. It’s not what I wanted to do. But last night I started to feel not very well.
“Yesterday I was feeling okay. I came to practice and did everything I had to do. I felt fine. I had dinner. I started to feel so-so with my stomach. I was like ‘alright, just didn’t digest very well.’ I woke up at 1 a.m. and started vomiting. I wasn’t feeling the best. Then I tried to sleep.
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“Couldn’t sleep at all. At 6, 7 a.m. I vomited again. This time it was pretty bad. We called the doctor in the room. He came and gave me some stuff.
“I was hoping it could just be something from dinner or something like that. Throughout the day I couldn’t eat. Every time I ate or drank something I would go back to the bathroom. So it’s tough. It’s tough. For how the tournament was, for how many hours I spent on court I was actually feeling very good.
“To have to withdraw from my first Slam semifinal is not something you wish for anybody. I tried to get ready and tried to stay as much as I could here.
“Tried to see if I could go on court but every time I got up I feel dizzy and I don’t feel the best. I’m pretty sure if I eat again I won’t feel good. That was the right decision for me to take.”
After Arnaldi’s heartbreaking news, Cobolli will now head into his first-ever Grand Slam final. Although not the way he would have liked to reach the final, it is a massive opportunity for the Italian star.
As for Arnaldi, he has had a tournament to remember at Roland Garros. The star has beaten Matteo Berrettini, Frances Tiafoe, and Stefanos Tsitsipas in an impressive run to the final four.
Following his exploits in Paris, the Italian currently sits at World No. 34 in the ATP Tour rankings. For a player who has struggled with a foot injury recently, that’s very impressive indeed.
The post Matteo Arnaldi shares heartbreaking statement after last-minute Roland Garros withdrawal appeared first on Tennis365.
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