Rafael Nadal has ended Nick Kyrgios’ gallant Australian Open campaign with an enthralling four-set fourth-round victory at Melbourne Park.
The so-called grudge match of the Open was instead played out in good spirits between the two feuding rivals, as Nadal prevailed 6-3 3-6 7-6 (8-6) 7-6 (7-4) in a high-quality encounter on Monday night.
The world No.1’s reward is a quarter-final meeting on Wednesday with fifth seed Dominic Thiem in what will be a sequel to the past two French Open finals won by the Spaniard.