Paris (AFP) - Rafael Nadal said it was only "human" of him to feel sympathy for Alexander Zverev who was forced to retire from their French Open semi-final on Friday after injuring his ankle in a horror fall.
Tearful German world number three Zverev had to leave the court in a wheelchair after turning his ankle as he chased down a ball on Court Philippe Chatrier.
"If you are human, you feel sorry for a colleague," said Nadal after reaching his 14th final at Roland Garros and having seen his opponent scream in agony as he held his right ankle.
Zverev was trailing 7-6 (10/8), 6-6 after more than three hours of play at the time of the horror injury.
When he hobbled back on to the court on crutches to concede the match, the two men shared a warm embrace.
"It's not easy to talk about.I hope that he's not too badly injured, I hope it's not broken," said Nadal."I was with him when he was having the ultra-sound."
The match was played under the roof of Court Philippe Chatrier, creating heavy humid conditions with 15,000 spectators looking on.
However, Nadal said the court was not in a bad shape.
"It was an accident, it was just an unlucky moment."
Nadal hailed Zverev's performance as the German attempted to become the first German man to make the final since Michael Stich in 1996.
"It was a very tough match.He was playing amazing and I know how much it means to him to win a Grand Slam.
"The conditions were not ideal for me.I had to do a lot of surviving.The first set was a miracle but I was fighting."
