Nadal passes huge Oz test
OPEN: SCHWARTZMAN TAKES WORLD NO 1 TO THE LIMIT
Rafael Nadal battled through a huge test to make his 10th Australian Open quarterfinal yesterday as Grigor Dimitrov ousted Nick Kyrgios to join him and Caroline Wozniacki kicked into full gear.
On an overcast and muggy day at Melbourne Park, the Spanish world No 1 was up against his most dangerous opponent yet in Diego Schwartzman, one of the smallest men on tour.
The Argentine 24th seed delivered powerful groundstrokes before Nadal prevailed 6-3, 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-3 in almost four hours on Rod Laver Arena.
It kept alive his push for a 17th Grand Slam title and also ensured he will remain number one when the new rankings come out after the tournament.
“It was a great battle,” said Nadal, who is chasing his second Melbourne title after beating Roger Federer in the 2009 final.
“Of course, I feel little bit tired, but I was able to keep fighting until the end.”
He will play sixth seed Marin Cilic for a place in the semifinals after the Croat beat Spanish 10th seed Pablo Correna Busta 6-7 (2/7), 6-3, 7-6 (7/0), 7-6 (7/3).
The win was Cilic’s 100th at a Grand Slam.
“I have played great tennis from the first round against tough opponents and now I am really looking to the next match, it will be definitely be a big challenge,” he said of the Nadal clash.
Ordinarily Nadal, as the top seed, would have top billing on Rod Laver court in the evening, but not with local star Kyrgios in action.
The Australian 22-year-old pushed world No 3 Dimitrov close in a hugely entertaining four-setter before succumbing 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 7-6 (7/4).
“Playing Nick is always tricky,” said the Bulgarian, as he targets bettering the semifinals he made last year.
“It was one of those matches you had to take any opportunity that you got.”
His reward is a showdown with Briton Kyle Edmund, who reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal with a 6-7 (4/7), 7-5, 6-2, 6-3 win over Italy’s Andreas Seppi.
World No 2 Wozniacki turned on the style in her match to take another step towards a maiden Grand Slam title.
The assured Wozniacki, a semifinalist in 2011 who has never quite lived up to the hype in the Slams, beat 19th-seeded Magdalena Rybarikova 6-3, 6-0 in her most impressive performance to date.
Her easy passage sets up a lasteight clash with gritty Spaniard Suarez Navarro, who battled back from a set and 4-1 down to shatter the hopes of 32nd seed Anett Kontaviet. –