Sweet Revenge! Verdasco Stuns Nadal In Five

He’s waited seven years, but revenge tasted sweet for Fernando Verdasco on Tuesday night in Melbourne as he stunned Rafael Nadal 7-6(6), 4-6, 3-6, 7-6(4), 6-2 in four hours and 41 minutes in the first round of the Australian Open.

On the very same court, Rod Laver Arena, in 2009, Verdasco had been on the losing end of a five-hour, 14-minute marathon against Nadal in the semi-finals that lingered into the Melbourne night — the longest match in Australian Open history at that time.

It looked as though Nadal would once again edge his countryman in the decider as he assumed a 2-0 lead in the fifth. But Verdasco reeled off the last six games to claim a memorable victory.

“I was just closing my eyes and everything went in!” Verdasco told Jim Courier an on-court interview for the host broadcaster. “In the fourth set I started serving better than the second and third. He started playing less deep and strong. I started coming inside the court, being aggressive and it went well.

“Winning against Rafa in five sets here, coming from two sets to one down, is an unbelievable feeling.”

When Verdasco took the more-than-hour-long first set in a tight tie-break, fans figured they might be in for another match for the ages. Nadal, the No. 5 seed, stormed back with service breaks in the third and ninth games of the second set, and added another to open the third in moving ahead two sets to one.

Verdasco would break Nadal to kick off the fourth set and even had a chance to serve out the set 5-4. But Nadal would battle back to force a tie-break. However, Verdasco found the range on his forehand again and bullied Nadal into submission as he took the match into a decider.

It is the first time in 11 visits that Nadal has suffered a first-round exit at Melbourne Park. The 29 year old has a 45-10 tournament record, lifting the trophy in 2009 (d. Federer) and finishing runner-up in 2012 (l. to Djokovic) and 2014 (l. to Wawrinka).

Verdasco goes on to face Dudi Sela in the second round.