Rafael Nadal reveals if taking tablets in Australian Open QF had effect on stomach issues

Former world number one Rafael Nadal defeated 14th seed Denis Shapovalov in a five-set thriller on Tuesday to progress to the men's singles semi-final of the Australian Open for the seventh time.

The Spaniard defeated his Canadian opponent 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 in four hours and seven minutes to progress to the next round and keep his hopes of winning a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam alive.

Following the conclusion of the match, Nadal revealed that he had been facing some stomach problems during the match before adding that he was completely exhausted following a tight and intense battle that went down until the wire.

Rafael Nadal reveals he had stomach issues

While speaking in his post-match interview with former Australian Open champion Jim Courier, Rafael Nadal said, "I started to feel not very well in my stomach." The 35-year old added that he was given some tablets and the physio checked his blood pressure before confirming that everything was fine. When Courier asked Nadal if his condition improved after he took the tablets, the Spaniard replied, "So-so."

As far as the match was concerned, Nadal revealed that he had no energy after a gruelling battle with Denis Shapovalov in the quarter-final. "I was completely destroyed after that, said the 35-year old in his post-match interview. "For me, it's amazing, honestly, to be in the semi-finals." The Spaniard will now face either seventh seed Matteo Berrettini or Gael Monfils in the semi-finals on Thursday.

Nadal, who is as humble as ever, made sure to credit his 22-year old Canadian opponent after the match. "I was lucky that I was serving great in the fifth. He was serving huge, and especially the second serve," added the 35-year old. After losing the first two sets convincingly, Shapovalov made it as hard as possible for the 20-time Grand Slam to close out the match.

The Canadian went on to win the third and fourth sets because of his brilliant serve before Nadal found enough to win the all-important deciding fifth set. Shapovalov served 20 aces throughout the match and just five double faults in comparison to Nadal's eight aces and 11 double faults. However, the Canadian struggled to win the big points in the match. He converted just two break point opportunities from his eight chances in comparison to the Spaniard's three from seven opportunities.