Australian Open 2016: Nadal Suffers Shocking First Round Defeat To Verdasco

Spain’s Rafael Nadal waves to the crowd as he leaves after losing his first round match against Spain’s Fernando Verdasco at the Australian Open tennis tournament at Melbourne Park, Australia, January 19, 2016. He hasn’t made it past the quarterfinals since the 2014 Australian Open, his last Grand Slam win, though he came into this year’s tournament on something of an upswing.

Verdasco, beaten by his fellow Spaniard in the semi-finals seven years ago, produced an outstanding display in the deciding set, continually hitting the lines with a range of powerful backstrokes for which Nadal had no answer.

In his pomp, Nadal’s forehand was the most destructive shot in the game but he was outpowered by Verdasco, who hit an incredible 90 winners to his opponent’s 37.

“I think it would be silly to look at Venus’ age and somehow consider that as a reflection of her level”, said the 24-year-old.

It was the first time Nadal had lost in the opening round of a major tournament since his shock loss to Steve Darcis at Wimbledon in 2013.

But Verdasco has won two of the last three, taking advantage of the 2015 version of Nadal, and he usually starts these sorts of matches very well before failing to press home his advantage and tailing off.

“When the draw came out and I saw who I was playing, I thought ‘I just hope I stay out there more than an hour, ‘” Konta said after the match.

Keys defeated Kazakhstan’s Zarina Diyas in straight sets while Ivanovic was barely troubled in her victory against Australian wildcard Tammi Patterson, not facing a single break point in a straight-forward 6-2, 6-3 win.

Rafael Nadal and Simona Halep were sent crashing out of the Australian Open first round on Tuesday as a dramatic day of upsets shifted the landscape of the year’s first Grand Slam.

“To win against Rafa here in five sets after coming back from two sets down is an unbelievable feeling, I will just try to keep it up”.

Andy Murray starts his Open campaign on Tuesday and he’s been handed a tricky assignment against one of the better up and coming players on the circuit in Alexander Zverev to begin with.

“I was practicing a little bit different, trying to be more aggressive. I kept doing it, so it went well”.

At around the same price I’m happy to side with Donald Young to defeat Santi Giraldo in their 2am clash out on Court 5.

After surrendering a 5-2 lead in the fourth set, he dug deep to win the tie-break and take the match the distance. Meanwhile, eighth-seed David Ferrer also advanced to the next round after outclassing German Peter Gojowczyk 6-4, 6-4,6-2 in the first round. “If Australia Open not good, maybe I finish tennis”.

Against Konta, however, she struggled to connect with her first serve and couldn’t match the Australian-born Konta’s power from the baseline.

Three years later Nadal was hit by a back problem when he lost to Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka in the final and last year he was bounced out by Tomas Berdych in straight sets in the quarters.