Rafael Nadal shrugged off his derailed bid for the Grand Slam record with a pledge to keep "fighting" but the Spaniard leaves the Australian Open with familiar regrets after bowing out to a rising talent on Wednesday.
World No. 2 Nadal appeared set to cruise into the semifinals at Melbourne Park but was beaten 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4, 7-5 by Stefanos Tsitsipas, an opponent he destroyed in the semifinals in 2019.
The 34-year-old has now lost in the quarterfinals in consecutive years, having been outplayed by Dominic Thiem in 2020.