Weltnachrichten – AU – Rafael Nadal now wins three wins before GOAT status

Rafael Nadal insists he’s not obsessed with winning a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam Place even though he ran out of tennis immortality within three victories

Nadal rushed into the quarter-finals of the 13th on Monday with a 6: 3: 6: 4: 6: 2 win over Fabio Fognini Australian Open – with a back injury that excluded him from the ATP Cup. Remember

Now the focus is firmly on whether the world No. 2 can catch the major who pushes him in front of Roger Federer – even if Nadal himself downplayed his ambitions for a second triumph in Melbourne Park

“Of course I am (motivated by winning Grand Slams) but I’m not obsessed,” said Nadal

“I play tennis I like tennis I like what I do That’s the main thing

“I mean, of course I am very motivated to win Grand Slams and take part in the most important events of the year. There is no doubt about that

“The only thing I said is that I was never obsessed with being the best no, I just made my way that worked for me”

If the 2009 champion triumphs again in Melbourne, he will also hit an elusive milestone: he will become the first man in the Open era to win all four Grand Slams twice

But Nadal instead emphasized his focus on having a “healthy” ambition and knowing that he “gave everything” in every game

“When you have too much ambition, you can get frustrated when you are unable to achieve all of the things you want,” he said

Nadal will play against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarter-finals after the ninth Italian Matteo Berrettini withdrew from the fourth round on Monday evening with a stomach load

World Nr2 said he recently trained for two days in a row for the first time since his back injury and is confident that his physical condition will improve with each lap

After Nadal had won the first set against Fognini – which he described as his best tennis of the tournament so far – he slumped to a 4-2 deficit in the second

But the Spaniard abandoned four games in a row to win the set and defeated Fognini in straight sets

“I took a step forward today, something I needed and I have to take another for Wednesday,” said Nadal

Nadal, Fognini, Nadal Australian Open 2021