Daily Dose of Social Media: Nadal pictures after 4-hour-battle as Halep updates fans on her injury

In our Daily Dose of Social Media, we recap the latest updates from ATP and WTA stars on social media. Simona Halep provided updates on her challenging situation due to a knee injury that has prevented her from returning to the courts. On the other hand, Rafa Nadal seems to have put his physical issues behind him, as he shared images of his preparation for the semi-finals after a 4-hour battle in Bastad.

Meanwhile, a fun video of Leylah Fernandez shows her eagerly awaiting the Olympic Games, and a social media post recalls Iga Swiatek winning Olympic gold at just 17 years old.

Simona Halep updated her fans on her challenging return to the courts due to a knee injury that has prevented the Romanian from fully rejoining the tour after a doping ban kept her out for 560 days.

Halep finally returned to the tour in March at the WTA 1000 Miami Open after receiving a wildcard from the organisers. Despite showing competitive form, she lost to Paula Badosa 6-1, 4-6, 3-6. Since then, she only played in the WTA 125 in Paris in May but retired during the second set against McCartney Kessler, leading 7-5, 2-3.

“I wanted to provide a little health update since I have been away from the court lately. It is not the best news, but I wanted to share all the same,” the 2-time Grand Slam champion wrote. “For a few months now, I have been struggling with a knee injury. It’s an injury I have never had before and it has been a tough one to manage, with the pain persisting.

“It has been a very difficult period (almost two years) mentally and emotionally for me and struggling physically on top of that definitely doesn’t help. I have decided to take the time needed to recover properly, rather than training and playing through pain. My instinct has always been to try to come back as soon as possible, but I am not a machine, I am a human being and I need time to recover from everything I have gone through.”

World No. 192 Quentin Halys is playing probably the best tennis of his season, having reached the semi-finals of the Swiss Open Gstaad after advancing from the qualifiers. The 27-year-old Frenchman surpassed the qualifiers and consecutively defeated Richard Gasquet (No. 132), Lukas Klein (No. 118), and Gustavo Heide (No. 178) to reach the semi-finals of an ATP tournament for the second time in his career (the first being at the 2023 Estoril Open).

The Frenchman also achieved a great result at Wimbledon, advancing through the qualifiers and reaching the third round, including victories over Christopher Eubanks and former semi-finalist Karen Khachanov (21st seed). He fell to Holger Rune (15th seed) after failing to capitalise on a two-set lead.

With 10 wins in his last 11 matches (including qualifiers), Halys likely made the point of the week in his quarter-final match against Heide in Gstaad. After falling to the ground, Halys surprised by finishing the rally with a forehand from the floor, which caught the Brazilian off guard and forced his error. You can find the video shared on social media here.

The Olympics begin next week at Roland Garros, and the Polish player will be the favourite, as a 4-time French Open champion with an incredible 35-2 record at the French stadium.

In that event, Swiatek won the gold medal in doubles alongside Slovakia's Kaja Juvan. They played as part of a "Mixed-NOC team," composed of athletes representing different National Olympic Committees (NOCs). In singles, Swiatek reached the quarter-finals.

The photo shows a 17-year-old Swiatek already beginning to achieve international success on clay courts. The image impressed many fans:

Rafael Nadal's quarter-final clash against Mariano Navone (No. 36) at the Bastad Open saw the Spaniard emerge victorious in an epic battle reminiscent of his best moments on clay courts. The former world No. 1 advanced to the semi-finals with a 6-7(2), 7-5, 7-5 win after four hours, marking his second-longest three-set match.

Nadal will aim to reach his first final since the 2022 French Open, where he defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets. Hours after his victory over Navone in Sweden, the 22-time Grand Slam champion shared photos on social media of his win and another of him on a stationary bike post-match.

Ana Ivanovic shared a photo with world No. 37 Sorana Cirstea on a tennis court. The former world No. 1 retired in 2016 at just 29 years old, having won 20 titles, including the 2008 French Open.

Now 36, Ivanovic posed alongside the 34-year-old Romanian who continues to showcase her skills on the tour. During their professional careers, they faced each other four times, with Ivanovic holding the head-to-head advantage.

Barbora Krejcikova has shared a new compilation of photos on her social media from her recent days after winning Wimbledon. The triumph at the All England Club seems to have propelled the Czech player to greater exposure, as she shares some "behind the scenes" glimpses with her fans.

Krejcikova reached world No. 10 following the unexpected title at Wimbledon. The Czech player had an entry ranking outside the top 30 but managed to secure her second Grand Slam title. In the final, she defeated Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 2-6, 6-4.

Elina Svitolina announced on her Instagram Stories that she has parted ways with her coach, Raemon Sluiter. The Dutchman had been working with Svitolina since March 2023, following her return from maternity leave. Previously, Sluiter had also coached Kiki Bertens and Tallon Griekspoor.

“I just wanted to let you all know that Raemon Sluiter and I have decided to end our working relationship,” the former world No. 4 wrote. “We have had a great run, and Ray has helped me become a better player. In my opinion, he’s one of the best out there.”

2021 US Open runner-up Leylah Fernandez shared a fun video of herself while eagerly awaiting the start of the Olympic Games. The Canadian last competed at Wimbledon, where she was defeated by Caroline Wozniacki in the second round after squandering two match points.

The world No. 23 posted a video of herself acting out her “countdown to Paris 2024,” as the caption read. In the video, Leylah starts laughing while the camerawoman hilariously says, “You don’t sleep like that, surely,” prompting Fernandez to laugh even more. “She’s so excited she sleeps with a massive smile on her face.”