Skip to content

Nadal handed victory

Image: Nadal: Into last eight

Rafael Nadal is through to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open after Paul-Henri Mathieu retired injured.

Latest Tennis Stories

Frenchman quits after suffering calf injury

Rafael Nadal is through to the quarter-finals of the Australian Open after Paul-Henri Mathieu retired through injury. Second seed Nadal was leading 6-4 3-0 when Mathieu abruptly quit after failing to overcome a calf strain which was hampering his movement. After allowing the Spaniard to take a double-break in the second set, Mathieu walked over to shake hands. Nadal will face Jarkko Nieminen in the last eight and remains on course for another Grand Slam showdown with Roger Federer. "I was enjoying the match," Nadal said. "I was playing my best tennis since arriving in Australia. "I'm happy to be in the quarter-final, but not like this. "I feel very good and I will have extra practice tomorrow to make up for my lost match time. "I feel more comfortable over the last few days with my backhand, playing very aggressive with the forehand and serving with good percentage and not very slow. "There are the important points and I'm also running better and feeling everything better."