“I was completely destroyed”
Fighter Nadal staggers towards the record
01/25/2022, 09:46 am
Rafael Nadal can set a record at the Australian Open in Melbourne. In the absence of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, the Spaniard can look forward to his 21st Grand Slam victory. Against Zverev conqueror Denis Shapovalov, plagued by stomach problems, he fought his way dramatically into the semifinals.
Rafael Nadal staggered, but he didn’t fall: the ailing tennis superstar showed a huge fighting spirit at the Australian Open and is now just two wins away from the sole Grand Slam record. Despite obvious physical problems, the Spaniard fought his way through to a 6: 3, 6: 4, 4: 6, 3: 6, 6: 3 against Canadian Denis Shapovalov and reached the semifinals in Melbourne for the seventh time.
After 4:08 hours, Nadal converted his first match point and was extensively celebrated by the audience for this energetic performance. “I was completely devastated after this hard, warm day. It’s incredible for me to be in this semi-final,” said the 35-year-old: “I didn’t feel good in my stomach. I was lucky that I was in the fifth set served great.”
Shapovalov had beaten Olympic champion Alexander Zverev (Hamburg) in three sets in the round of 16. In the semifinals on Friday, Nadal expects a duel with Wimbledon finalists Matteo Berrettini (Italy) or Gael Monfils from France. He has already reached the final in Melbourne five times – but he could only win in 2009.
The slump comes in the third set
Nadal initially showed a strong performance in the quarterfinals against Shapovalov. Towards the end of the third sentence, however, the dominance crumbled – a little later the Mallorcan took a break from treatment, indicated pain in the stomach area and had the doctor hand him some medication. When changing sides, he kept having cold air blown in his face from a cooling hose, before the decisive round he took a short break in the dressing room – and came back walking on his gums with irrepressible fighting qualities against the then much too hectic Canadian.
With another title at the Australian Open, Nadal can make history in the absence of Novak Djokovic (expelled) and Roger Federer (injured). If he won the tournament, he would be crowned the sole Grand Slam record champion. All three top players are currently at 20 major titles. By beating Shapovalov, Nadal is the fourth-oldest player to reach the Australian Open semifinals. In all four Grand Slam tournaments, the Spaniard is in the top four for the 36th time – only Federer (46 semifinals) and Djokovic (42) have managed to do this more often.