Australian Open: Nadal eases past Fognini, home girl Barty reaches quarter-finals

AUSTRALIAN Open 2009 men’s  singles champion Rafael Nadal’s hopes of clinching a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title remain alive, the Spaniard surging past Fabio Fognini 6-3 6-4 6-2 on Monday to book his 13th Australian Open quarter-final, the 43rd time he has advanced to the last eight in a major.

“That’s a good number,” the 34-year-old said, smiling. “Happy to be in [the] quarter-finals again, it means a lot to me, it’s a positive start.”

Nadal’s dominant 12-4 head-to-head advantage over Fognini – and 6-1 on hard courts – hasn’t translated at majors, with the duo tied at 1-1. 

The Italian and Roger Federer are the only two players who’ve recovered from a two-sets-to-love deficit to beat Nadal, Fognini eliminating the Spaniard in the third round of the 2015 US Open.

Also in the men’s singles event, Stefanos Tsitsipas has been handed a free passage to the quarter-finals after fourth-round opponent Matteo Berrettini withdrew with an abdominal strain from their match scheduled for Monday night at Rod Laver Arena. 

Berrettini, the ninth seed, was injured late in his straight-sets victory over Russian Karen Khachanov on Saturday night, requiring a medical timeout before returning to the court to put the finishing touches on a 7-6(1) 7-6(5) 7-6(5) victory that saw him make the fourth round in Melbourne for the first time. 

In Monday’s night session (morning in Nigeria) at Rod Laver Arena, women’s world No.1 Ash Barty defeated American Shelby Rogers 6-3 6-4 to reach the quarter-finals against Karolina Muchova and continue her quest to become the first home player to win the Australian Open since 1978. 

Also on Monday, Jessica Pegula’s magical run at Australian Open 2021 continues, with the American upsetting Elina Svitolina in three sets to reach her first Grand Slam quarter-final.

Playing intelligent tennis in a poised performance, Pegula notched her first career top-10 victory thanks to the 6-4 3-6 6-4 victory.

It sets up a meeting with compatriot Jennifer Brady, who toppled No.28 seed Donna Vekic 6-1 7-5 on Monday afternoon.

ausopen.com.