Nadal Beats Fognini, Three Wins Away From Being The Greatest
Rafael Nadal has moved into the quarter-finals of the Australian Open having defeated Fabio Fognini.
The Italian became Nadal’s fourth victim in the competition, to reach his 13th quarter-final in Australia. Only Roger Federer (15) and local John Newcombe (14) have found themselves at this stage more than Nadal.
The Spaniard beat Fognini over two hours and 16 minutes, and with a score of 6-3, 6-4, 6-2.
Fognini lost his first serve with two double faults, handing Nadal a 3-0 lead. But the Italian’s quality showed and he recovered slightly. Yet, in the end, Nadal wasn’t to be overcome.
With Novak Djokovic – who expected to be Nadal’s biggest rival for success in Australia – struggling in each game, Nadal is getting better with every outing.
Stefanos Tsitsipas awaits Nadal in the quarter-finals on Wednesday as the Spaniard targets his 21st grand slam, a feat nobody has achieved before. Currently, he is tied with Federer on 20 grand slams.
