Injured Nadal out of Australian Open

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA — One point after his medical timeout in the fourth set, Rafael Nadal went to the rear of the court to squat and do a knee-raise, trying to stretch out his injured right leg.

Three games later — one point after his subsequent visit from the trainer — Nadal had to delay Marin Cilic’s serve while trying to walk out the pain at the start of the fifth set.

After limping and wincing through two more games, and after failing to fend off a sixth break point, the 16-time major champion was out of the Australian Open.

The sixth-seeded Cilic advanced to his first semifinal in Australia since 2010 with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 2-0 victory Tuesday.

He will next play 49thranked Kyle Edmund, who beat third-ranked Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal for the first time.

“Tough moments —not (for) the first time here,” Nadal said. “I’m a positive person, but today is an opportunity lost to be in a semifinal for a Grand Slam and fight for an important title for me.

“It’s really tough to accept.”

Injuries to star players dominated headlines before the tournament. Five-time Australian Open finalist Andy Murray withdrew so he could have surgery on his hip.

Nadal (right knee), sixtime champion Novak Djokovic (right elbow) and 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka (left knee) left their fitness decisions to the eve of the tournament — it’s no surprise they are all out of the tournament.

There are limits to human endurance, and Nadal found his on Tuesday.

“Somebody who is running the tour should think (a) little bit about what’s going on. Too many people getting injured,” said Nadal, who was still limping and grimacing at a post-match news conference. “I don’t know if they have to think a little bit about the health of the players.

“I don’t know if we keep playing in this very, very hard surfaces what’s going to happen in the future with our lives.”

Nadal said the timing and the number of tournaments on the schedule and the proliferation of hardcourts are concerns.

Other players have expressed similar views.

Last year’s Australian Open was one for the ages, with Roger Federer returning from a six-month injury layoff and beating Nadal in five sets in the final, and Serena Williams beating her sister, Venus, for the women’s title.

Serena opted not to defend her title, deciding she hadn’t had enough time to recover from giving birth to her first child in September. Venus Williams lost in the first round.

This year’s Australian Open is shaping up more as one of discovery.

On the women’s side, Angelique Kerber was the only major champion to reach the quarterfinals.