Rafael Nadal Tops Injured Pablo Carreno Busta in 2017 French Open Quarter-Finals

Rafael Nadal advanced to the semi-finals of the 2017 French Open on Wednesday after Pablo Carreno Busta retired early in the second set.

The fourth seed was firmly in control of the contest after winning the first set 6-2 and leading 2-0 in the second, but an abdominal problem forced his compatriot to call the match to an early end.

Carreno Busta did not start badly in the windy conditions as he varied his shots—including some powerful cross-court backhands—to try to take the sting out of Nadal's booming forehand, but he quickly found himself 2-0 down in the opening set.

The 20th seed deservedly broke back immediately when he hit a delightful drop shot before forcing Nadal to net a return, but Nadal really hit his stride on his forehand in the following game and went a break up once more, per Eurosport UK:

The nine-time Roland Garros champion continued to outclass his opponent, consolidating his lead with a hold before powering his way to 5-1:

While trying to serve out the set, some surprisingly loose play from Nadal allowed him to be broken to love.

It proved a brief respite for Carreno Busta, however, as his poor serving cost him in the following game, and back-to-back double-faults handed Nadal the opener.

The former then required lengthy treatment between sets after calling for an injury timeout and re-emerged on to the court some time later with tape on his stomach.

Nadal began the second as he did the first, taking a 2-0 lead as Carreno Busta struggled before ultimately throwing in the towel, per Roland Garros' official Twitter account:

Having played for less than an hour, the Spaniard should be fresher than his semi-final opponent, but equally the shortened match is perhaps not ideal for his momentum in the tournament.

Nadal will play the winner of Novak Djokovic's quarter-final with Dominic Thiem.