Rafa Nadal win over Adrian Mannarino at the Australian Open

Nadal eventually won in straight sets. | Dave Hunt

Majorca Daily Bulletin reporterMelbourne23/01/2022 08:53
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Rafael Nadal won a first-set tie-break that lasted 28 minutes in overcoming France's Adrian Mannarino and progressing to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open in Melbourne.

The Mallorcan, seeking his 21st Grand Slam title, eventually took the tie-break 16-14. He then went on to win in straight sets, with Mannarino struggling with injury.

After the match, Nadal admitted that he had been a little lucky at the end of the tiebreaker. He had his chances and so did Mannarino. "That crazy first set was so important and the service break at the beginning of the second set too."

The match result was 7-6 (16-14) 6-2 6-2, sixth-seed Nadal now poised to face Canada's Denis Shapovalov in the quarters.