Rafael Nadal lost to Fernando Verdasco in a thrilling five-set match on Tuesday, sending him out of the Australian Open first round and raising doubts about his chances of adding to his 14 Grand Slam victories.
The 29-year-old, who frequently suffers from injuries, battled for four hours and 41 minutes before Verdasco prevailed 7-6 (8/6), 4-6, 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2. This was only his second first-round defeat at a major tournament.
It was one of the worst ever Grand Slam performances for Nadal, who also lost in the 2013 Wimbledon first round and has not won a major title since the 2014 French Open.
“It’s tough, but at the same time, I know I did everything that I can to be ready for it,” Nadal said. “Was not my day. Let’s keep going. That’s the only thing.
“There is no more thing to do than keep practising hard, keep practising the same way that I was doing the last four, five months.”
Nadal can at least take heart that the Australian Open has historically been his toughest Grand Slam tournament, with his only win coming against Roger Federer in 2009.
That year, he fought off Verdasco in another five-set epic which clocked in at five hours, 14 minutes – the second longest match in tournament history – in the semi-finals.
But the following year, he limped out of his 2010 quarter-final with Andy Murray during the third set with a knee injury.
In 2011, Nadal was troubled by a thigh injury as he went down in straight sets in the quarter-finals to fellow Spaniard David Ferrer.
And in 2014, Nadal was hit by a back problem when he lost to Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka in the final.