Nadal in race to be fit as Djokovic targets 8th final

Rafael Nadal is facing a race against time to be fit for Friday's mouthwatering Wimbledon semi-final against Nick Kyrgios but can either man stop Novak Djokovic in his relentless push for a fourth straight crown?

A meeting between 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal and the mercurial Australian has been on the cards since Kyrgios defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in an ill-tempered third-round meeting.

Nadal has suffered a "seven millimetre" tear to his abdomen but still intends to play his Wimbledon semi-final, sports daily Marca reported. He however turned up for practice at Wimbledon on Thursday a day after the 22-times Grand Slam winner played through an abdominal injury to beat American Taylor Fritz in an absorbing quarter-final.

Nadal, the 2008 and 2010 champion, underwent scans on the injury on Thursday following his gruelling 3-6, 7-5, 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10/4) victory over Taylor Fritz in Wednesday's quarter-finals.

He played under similar circumstances at the 2009 US Open when he had a two-centimetre tear. He went on to make the semi-finals, losing to eventual champion Juan Martin del Potro.

Meanwhile, Djokovic had to come back from two sets down against Italian 10th seed Jannik Sinner in his quarter-finals on Tuesday. But the 35-year-old finished the match looking fresh, even pulling off an outrageous winner while doing the splits.

The Serbian top seed is on a 26-match winning streak at Wimbledon as he seeks to draw level with Pete Sampras on seven titles at the All England Club -- just one behind Roger Federer's men's record.

Djokovic, who beat the 26-year-old Cameron Norrie in their only previous meeting, is braced for a partisan crowd.