Rafael Nadal admitted he has been surprised by his stellar performances at the Australian Open as he prepares for his bid to reach the last four in pursuit of a record 21st Grand Slam title.
Earlier this month, Nadal returned to action on the ATP Tour for the first time since early August, when the legendary Spaniard announced he was prematurely ending his 2021 season to rehabilitate his injured left foot. As a result, his world ranking dropped to six.
The 35-year-old has found his best form in Australia, winning the warm-up Summer Set event in Melbourne earlier this month, before defeating Marcos Giron, Yannick Hanfmann, Karen Khachanov and Adrian Mannarino in the first four rounds of the Australian Open.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion - level with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic for the most men’s singles major titles in history - will face Denis Shapovalov in the quarter-finals at Melbourne Park on Tuesday.
The Canadian defeated Nadal as a teenager in their first meeting on hard courts when they clashed in Montreal in 2017. However, the 35-year-old has since improved the career head-to-head record between the two to 3-1.
He is chasing a second title Down Under after winning the Australian Open back in 2009.
“It's going to be a tough one for me,” Nadal told reporters. “It's a match to try my best, to play at my highest level if I want to have chances to go through.
"Yeah, I'm excited about it. I didn't expect to be where I am weeks ago.”
Elsewhere, Italian seventh seed Matteo Berrettini will face Frenchman Gael Monfils while Shapovalov’s compatriot Felix Auger-Aliassime is set to clash with Daniil Medvedev - the highest-ranked player remaining following Novak Djokovic’s deportation.
Stefanos Tsitsipas and Jannik Sinner’s meeting completes the quarter-final lineup.
In the women’s draw, world number one Ash Barty is hoping to give Australia a first home women’s champion since 1978. She will face American Jessica Pegula, who has never reached the semi-finals of a Major and is the 21st seed.
Madison Keys, a former US Open runner-up, will clash with French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova in what could be an interesting match to round out Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Danielle Collins will take on Alize Cornet while Iga Swiatek is set to battle Kaia Kanepi for a place in the final four.
