Rafael Nadal cramps up after victory

Even if it turns out to be nothing, which Rafael Nadal insisted was the case, the frightening scene in his postmatch interview Sunday will go down as memorable.Answering questions in Spanish, Nadal suddenly started grimacing in pain. He tilted his head back, covered his face with his arm. His face twisted in agony as he slid down in his chair, motioning for help.

After a few nervous moments with trainers crowded around the table, Nadal popped back up. A simple leg cramp, he insisted."It's bad luck it happened here and not in the locker room," he said.

But because it did, that was the big news Sunday at the U.S. Open. Bigger than Nadal's straight-set win over David Nalbandian, which came about 2 hours before the cramping episode. Bigger than wins by Americans Donald Young (a surprise) and Andy Roddick (not as much of one)."I just have cramping in my leg, that's all," Nadal said.

His 7-6 (7-5), 6-1, 7-5 win over Nalbandian was routine, at least as routine as they've been going for the defending champion and No. 2 seed through the first week at Flushing Meadows."I was happy about almost everything today," Nadal said. "I think my movements worked pretty well, and the forehand worked really well, and the backhand, too. Just when I had to win the match at 5-3, I played a really bad game there. For the rest of the match, I'm happy about everything."

But shortly after saying that, the cramping came -- in his right quadriceps and his right hamstring. It was a scary scene with a few dozen reporters watching and the cameras rolling. Certainly something that will give people plenty to talk about as Nadal gears up for the second week.Nadal wasn't the only one who struggled with the heat on a windy, humid day in Queens with temperatures in the mid-80s.

In Louis Armstrong Stadium, No. 26 Flavia Pennetta backed up her victory over Maria Sharapova with a 6-4, 7-6 (8-6) win over No. 13 Peng Shuai of China. But she also struggled with the heat. Trailing, 5-3, in the second, Pennetta got a break to stay in it. She forced a tiebreaker but appeared near exhaustion as the set wore on. The match took 2 hours, 31 minutes.Later, Roddick and Young won their matches.

Roddick, seeded 21st, defeated Julien Benneteau, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5).Young, the one-time top-ranked junior, took another step toward fulfilling his vast potential with a 7-5, 6-4, 6-3 upset over No. 24 Juan Ignacio Chela. The 84th-ranked Young is in the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time.

In an all-American match Sunday night, John Isner served 17 aces in a 7-6 (11-9), 6-4, 6-4 victory over Alex Bogomolov Jr. and moved to the fourth round.Later, fourth-seeded Andy Murray beat No. 25 Feliciano Lopez, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2.

source:freep