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Rafa Nadal, Alex Zverev, and Nick Kyrgios were all in action on the warmest day of the Australian Open thus far, but Paula Badosa was forced to withdraw due to heat exhaustion.
Two missing stars are still generating headlines today, despite the fact that they are not even in Australia this year, and another player has tested positive for Covid-19.
Ash Barty, the home singles hope, will play first in the evening session at the Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal wins a thrilling first-set tie-break.
After winning a duel of left-handers against Adrian Mannarino 7-6 6-2 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open for the 14th time, the Spanish superstar stays on track for a men’s record 21st Grand Slam victory.
However, the 2009 winner required seven set chances to win a vital tiebreak 16-14 before cruising to victory in the second set after breaking the Frenchman in his first game.
“The first set was very, very emotional. Anything could have happened there. Anything could have happened at the end. I had my chances, he had his chances too.” the world No.6 remarked.
“Everyone knows how mental this game is. This crazy first set was so important and the break at the start of the second set. The first set was super difficult. His ball is difficult to control. Very flat, very fast…”
The Olympic champion is no longer in the game.
Denis Shapovalov, the No.14 seed, beat No.3 seed Alex Zverev 6-3 7-6 6-3 on the Margaret Court Arena, easing Nadal’s road to the final. In the second set, the German broke his racket on the court in fury.
After defeating Andy Murray in the Wimbledon semi-finals last year, the Canadian left-hander will now meet Nadal in his maiden quarter-final appearance here.
“I have always loved starting my season here in Australia. I have had some tough draws and I am happy to pull through today. I am definitely happy where my game is at. I played pretty smart today.” Shapovalov, who now works with Murray’s old coach Jamie Delgado, said.
It’s always an honor to go up against a guy like Rafa, he remarked of facing Nadal. There’s always entertaining – it’ll be a struggle, and I’m looking forward to it.
Since beating Nadal in Montreal in 2017, Shapovalov had lost his past 17 matches against top-five players.
