Late show: Nadal survives ‘epic’ battle
NEW YORK — Rafael Nadal began his U.S. Open quarterfinal as poorly as possible, shut out in a set by a 6-0 score for only the fourth time in 282 career Grand Slam matches.
On the previous three, he’d lost. On this one, he managed to come back to win, although it took 4 hours, 49 minutes and never did get easy for him.
The defending champion and No. 1 seed at Flushing Meadows recovered from his disastrous start and other stumbles along the way to beat No. 9 Dominic Thiem 0-6, 6-4, 7-5, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (5) for a semifinal berth at a third consecutive Grand Slam tournament, winning a physical, back-and-forth tussle that concluded after 2 a.m. on Wednesday.
“Very demanding, in all aspects,” said Nadal, who will face 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro on Friday for a berth in the final. “A question of a little bit of luck at the end.”
How tense and tight was it? Not only was Nadal two points from losing at 5-all in the closing tiebreaker, but he finished with fewer total points, 171-166.
“It’s cruel, sometimes, tennis,” Thiem said, calling the loss “the first really epic match I’ve played.”
When it ended, everyone in Nadal’s guest box — a group that included actor Ben Stiller — leaped to their feet to celebrate. Nadal climbed over the net to hug his opponent , then whisper an apology and words of encouragement.
“I’m very sorry for Dominic,” Nadal said. “He’s a close friend on tour. He’s a great guy. A great player.”
Kei Nishikori outlasted Marin Cilic in a rematch of the 2014 U.S. Open final, moving into the semifinals with a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6 (5), 4-6, 6-4 victory Wednesday.
The No. 21 seed gave Japan a men’s and women’s semifinalist at the same Grand Slam tournament for the first time in the professional era. Naomi Osaka won her quarterfinal against Lesia Tsurenko 6-1, 6-1 in the match that preceded Nishikori’s.
Madison Keys advanced with a 6-4, 6-3 win over No. 30 Carla Suarez Navarro.