Nadal digs deep in gruelling five setter

TWENTY times Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal reached the quarter-finals after a five-set victory 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 against Canadian world No.14 Denis Shapovalov yesterday.

The Spanish No.6 seed, making his 36th Grand Slam appearance, broke Shapovalov’s service in game four and then held service throughout.

Set two went in similar fashion, as the Canadian landed just 53% of his first serves, compared with 70% from Nadal, and made some 14 unforced errors at key moments.

The tides of the game took a turn in what could have been Nadal’s closing set. The 22-year-old young gun made a sudden break after holding 5-4 with the help of a double-fault from the world No.6.

In the fourth set, Nadal, suffering from stomach pain, left the court for just over five minutes for a medical assessment.

Taking the court for set five, Nadal pushed through his injury with a threelove breakaway, thanks in part to an incredible service game.

And after four hours and eight minutes Nadal out-waited his opponent, winning off an unforced error from Shapovalov.

Nadal spoke about his physical toil in the latter half of the match during a post-match interview.

“I was completely destroyed. A very tough day, very warm,” said Nadal.

“Two months ago, we didn’t know if we could be back on tour at all. It’s a present of life that I’m here playing tennis again,” said Nadal, who is still recovering from a foot injury.

As he now advances to his seventh semi-finals in the Melbourne Park, the Spanish tennis veteran has held on to his chance to become the first man to claim 21 Grand Slam titles.

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