'Rafa Slam' dream dies after injured star shocked by Ferrer
Rafael Nadal's hopes of winning a fourth consecutive grand slam title have evaporated after a shock defeat to David Ferrer at the Australian Open.
The top seed, who was struggling with a leg injury throughout, never looked close to his best in the quarter-final clash as his fellow Spaniard cruised to a surprisingly comfortable 6-4 6-2 6-3 victory on Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal was in trouble early on in all three sets as Ferrer took a firm grip with quick breaks and then held his nerve to build his winning advantage.
Ferrer will face Andy Murray in the last four, with the British hope looking for a second consecutive final appearance in Melbourne after avoiding the expected showdown with Nadal.
"It's not easy. Rafa is a gentleman and played on after being injured in the first set," Ferrer said after the match.
"I fought a lot and it was still not easy. I played aggressively and tried to go to the net but if Rafael was not injured I would not have won in three sets. It is a win but not how I wanted to win.
"I just tried to focus on my own game and I am happy. I will do my best now in the semi-finals."
The top seed, who was struggling with a leg injury throughout, never looked close to his best in the quarter-final clash as his fellow Spaniard cruised to a surprisingly comfortable 6-4 6-2 6-3 victory on Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal was in trouble early on in all three sets as Ferrer took a firm grip with quick breaks and then held his nerve to build his winning advantage.
Ferrer will face Andy Murray in the last four, with the British hope looking for a second consecutive final appearance in Melbourne after avoiding the expected showdown with Nadal.
"It's not easy. Rafa is a gentleman and played on after being injured in the first set," Ferrer said after the match.
"I fought a lot and it was still not easy. I played aggressively and tried to go to the net but if Rafael was not injured I would not have won in three sets. It is a win but not how I wanted to win.
"I just tried to focus on my own game and I am happy. I will do my best now in the semi-finals."
Struggle
The first signs that all was not well with Nadal appeared in the second game of the match as he dropped serve after a marathon struggle ended in him netting a backhand.
Nadal, who won the 2009 tournament, broke back immediately but then Ferrer returned the favour to re-establish his two-game advantage after the world number one had called a medical timeout.
The seventh seed would then build on his advantage and surged into a commanding lead, with his opponent's sluggish movement showing that he was considerably below full fitness.
Nadal did claim the break back with Ferrer on the brink of the first set, but surrendered the advantage again in the very next game to hand the set to his compatriot.
There were signs of a comeback when Ferrer dropped serve at the start of the second set but Nadal would then lose eight straight games as his fate was effectively sealed.
The pair temporarily stopped play so as not to be distracted by nearby Australia Day fireworks and when the match resumed, Ferrer seized the initiative.
After winning the second set, the Spanish veteran continued his hot streak into the third as he broke serve again to move 3-0 up.
Nadal did finally manage to stop the rot and grabbed three service holds to make the scoreline look a little more respectable, but Ferrer remained solid on his own serve to close out the victory, ending the match with a simple forehand winner.
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