Tennis: Nadal Denies Zverev In Five-set Fightback

MELBOURNE, , (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Jan, 2017 ) - Rafael Nadal staged a magnificent fightback to beat rising German star Alexander Zverev in a five-set thriller to reach the fourth round at the Australian Open on Saturday.

The indomitable 14-time Grand Slam champion, 11 years older than Zverev, dug deep into his physical reserves to pull out a 4-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-2 triumph in four hours and six minutes on Rod Laver Arena.

The Spaniard was staring at defeat after losing the third set in a tiebreaker but he showed his typical fighting qualities to deny the talented 19-year-old.

It was Nadal's 18th win in 26 five-set matches and set him up for a crack at French sixth seed Gael Monfils in the round of 16.

Nadal was pleased to have ended a run of losing three straight five-setters at the Grand Slams over the last two years. "It's an important result for me. I lost the last couple of ones in the fifth," Nadal said.

"So it's important for me to win a match like this, down two sets to one." Nadal has often praised Zverev's rich potential as a future top star of men's tennis, and Saturday's performance only reconfirmed it.