Rafael Nadal

Naomi Osaka's loss was the biggest story from Day 5 of the 2022 Australian Open, while Rafael Nadal held off a strong test from Karen Khachanov to reach the fourth round. 

There will be a new Australian Open women's singles champion after Amanda Anisimova stunned Osaka 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (5) in the third round on Friday. 

Osaka overcame some sloppy play in the first set, including 12 unforced errors, to earn a 6-4 win. 

Things turned in Anisimova's favor starting in the second set. The 20-year-old American hit four aces, saved two break points and had a 15-7 advantage in winners. 

Both women battled their way through the decisive third set, but in the end it was Anisimova who stepped up her game to get the win. She saved two match points and secured the win with an ace in the tiebreak. 

"I just want to soak in this moment," Anisimova told reporters after the match. "I’m just extremely happy. It was an amazing match, it was very close…it sucks we couldn’t both win today."

Anisimova, who entered the tournament ranked No. 60 in the WTA rankings, has yet to lose a match so far this year. She is now 8-0 in 2022 after defeating Osaka. The New Jersey native won the Melbourne Summer Set 2 two weeks ago as a tune-up for the Australian Open. 

Here are other notable results from Friday's action from Melbourne Park. 

Women's Singles

No. 1 Ashleigh Barty def. No. 30 Camila Giorgi, 6-3, 6-2

No. 4 Barbora Krejcikova def. No. 26 Jelena Ostapenko, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4

No. 8 Paula Badosa def. Marta Kostyuk, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4

Amanda Anisimova def. No. 13 Naomi Osaka, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10-5)

No. 21 Jessica Pegula def. Nuria Parrizas Diaz, 7-6 (3), 6-2

No. 24  Victoria Azarenka def. No. 15 Elina Svitolina, 6-0, 6-2

Men's Singles

No. 3 Alexander Zverev def. Radu Albot, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4

No. 6 Rafael Nadal def. No. 28 Karen Khachanov, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1

No. 7 Matteo Berrettini def. No. 31 Carlos Alcaraz, 6-2, 7-6 (3), 4-6, 2-6, 7-6 (10-5)

No. 14 Denis Shapovalov def. No. 23 Reilly Opelka, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3, 6-4

No. 17 Gael Monfils def. No. 16 Cristian Garin, 7-6 (4), 6-1, 6-3

Adrian Mannarino def. No. 18 Aslan Karatsev, 7-6 (4), 6-7 (4), 7-5, 6-4

Full results via AUSOpen.com

Recap

Osaka's loss prevented a fourth-round showdown with top-ranked Ashleigh Barty, who has yet to drop a set through her first three matches. 

Barty breezed past No. 30 Camila Giorgi 6-3, 6-2 in a match only took 61 minutes to complete. The Australian was fantastic on serve, winning 25 of 27 first-serve points. She is seeking her third career Grand Slam title after the 2019 French Open and 2021 Wimbledon. 

An Australian hasn't won the men's or women's Australian Open singles title since Christine O'Neil did it in 1978. Lleyton Hewitt is the last Aussie to reach the final when he lost to Marat Safin in 2005. 

Nadal had his most difficult test of the tournament thus far. His win over Khachanov took nearly three hours. It certainly wasn't his finest performance either. The Spanish star had six double-faults, including three in the second set, and was at a 14-4 disadvantage in aces. 

Despite some sloppy moments, Nadal looked to be moving around the court just fine. 

After Khachanov got back into the match with a third-set win, Nadal was able to shore things up in the decisive fourth set. He won six of the seven games and didn't drop a point in the final game. 

Next up for Nadal will be Adrian Mannarino. The 33-year-old Frenchman has won back-to-back matches against opponents ranked in the top 20 on the men's bracket. He beat No. 10 Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets in the second round before sending No. 18 Aslan Karatsev packing in the third round. 

Nadal and Mannarino have played two head-to-head matches previously. Nadal won both times, most recently at the 2019 ATP Masters 1000 in Paris. 

Alexander Zverev continued his red-hot start to the Australian Open with a third consecutive straight-set victory. He sent Radu Albot home after a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 win on Friday. 

Albot had no answers for Zverev's powerful serve that helped him rack up 16 aces. The 24-year-old did commit seven double-faults and 30 unforced errors. Those are two things he will have to clean up as the competition gets better.  

Zverev will take on No. 14 Denis Shapovalov in the fourth round on Sunday. Zverev does have a 4-2 advantage in their six previous head-to-head meetings. 

Rafael Nadal reached the fourth round of the 2022 Australian Open with a four-set win over No. 28 seed Karen Khachanov on Friday at Melbourne Park.

Nadal, the Grand Slam's sixth seed, cruised through the first two sets before dropping his first set of the tournament. He bounced back to win the fourth set in dominant fashion, 6-1, to advance. He's seeking his second Aussie Open title, with the first coming 2009.

A championship would also give the 35-year-old Spanish superstar 21 major singles titles, which would break a tie with longtime rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic for the top spot on the all-time men's list.

Nadal put together a strong all-around performance to further assert himself as one of the tournament favorites.

The fan favorite tallied 39 winners, won 88 percent of points when coming to net (23 of 26), 83 percent of points on his first serve (55 of 66) and 39 percent of points on the return (42 of 109). He also generated 15 break opportunities and coverted five of them.

His service games could still benefit from a little more efficiency, however, as he finished the third-round win with six double-faults against four aces.

Nadal has now reached at least the fourth round in 14 of his last 16 appearances at the Australian Open. He's advanced to the quarterfinals or later in each of the past five years, including two trips to the final, but a second title at Melbourne Park has remained elusive.

He'll face Adrian Mannarino, who's coming off back-to-back upset wins over 10th-seeded Hubert Hurkacz and 18th-seeded Aslan Karatsev, in his next match.

Meanwhile, it's the fourth straight year Khachanov was knocked out in the Australian Open third round.

The 25-year-old has never advanced beyond the quarterfinal in a Grand Slam tournament, though he did reach the final of the men's tournament at last summer's Tokyo Olympics.

The Russian played well at times in Friday's match, racking up 36 winners and 14 aces, but he also tallied 42 unforced errors and struggled to make consistent inroads on Nadal's serve, winning just 19 percent of his return points (19 of 98) with a single break.

Khachanov's next chance to hit the Grand Slam stage will come in May at the French Open. He reached the quarterfinals of the clay-court major in 2019.

Rafael Nadal got off to a strong start in the Australian Open, defeating Marcus Giron in straight sets 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in the first round on Sunday night. Nadal remains undefeated in 2022 at 4-0.

Nadal opened strong and was all over the court. He converted both of his break points and didn't lose a service game.

Giron fought hard in the second set. He cut an early 3-1 deficit to 4-3 and later battled back from set point four times to make it 5-4. But Nadal was in vintage form and took the next game. 

In the third set, Nadal quickly jumped out to a 5-1 lead, but Giron didn't go down easy. Giron took the next point and had break point in the next game, but Nadal battled back to finish the match. 

After the match, Nadal discussed his previous foot injury and his positive COVID-19 result from last month. He said it hasn't been easy to work his way back from both those ailments, but he's been taking things day by day.

The Australian Open is the tournament that Nadal has had the least success at during his storied career. In 16 appearances, he's only won once in Melbourne in 2009. Nadal was eliminated in the quarterfinals in each of the last two years.

Entering this year's tournament, Nadal isn't getting his hopes up. Noting that he hasn't played five sets since Roland Garros, he told Ben Rothenberg of The New York Times that he feels "the situation is not ideal for me to try to have an amazing result on the first Grand Slam."

Nadal awaits the winner of Yannick Hanfmann vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis, which is scheduled to take place at 1:30 a.m. ET on Monday.

Rafael Nadal has tested positive for COVID-19 following his appearance in the World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi last week. 

In a Twitter post written in Spanish (h/t Reuters), Nadal announced he had a PCR test return positive upon returning to Spain after the tournament: 

I am having some unpleasant moments but I hope that I will improve little by little. I am now homebound and have reported the result to those who have been in contact with me. As a result of the situation I have to have total flexibility with my calendar and I will analyze my options depending on my evolution. I will keep you informed of any decisions about my future tournaments.

The World Tennis Championships exhibition marked Nadal's first event since the Citi Open in August. He withdrew from the Canadian Open and Cincinnati Masters later that month because of a foot injury. 

Before the start of the U.S. Open in September, Nadal announced he was ending his 2021 season early because of ongoing issues with his left foot. 

"Honestly, I have been suffering much more than I should with my foot for a year and I need to take some time … to find a solution to this problem or at least improve it in order to continue to have options for the next few years," the 35-year-old said.

Injuries limited Nadal to just seven tournaments this year. The Spaniard did win the Barcelona Open and Italian Open but didn't reach the final in any other event. The 20-time Grand Slam singles winner lost to Novak Djokovic in the French Open semifinals. 

Nadal lost his opening match in Abu Dhabi to Andy Murray in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5, and then to Denis Shapovalov in three sets. 

The next event on the ATP Tour schedule is the Australian Open starting on Jan. 17. Nadal is currently scheduled to take part in the tournament, but he has not guaranteed that he will be ready to play by then.     

The U.S. Open will be without both Williams sisters this year. 

On the same day that Serena Williams announced she was withdrawing from the grand slam as she recovers from a torn hamstring, Venus Williams also pulled out of the event:

"Having some issues with my leg all this summer," Williams said in her Twitter post. "And just couldn't work through it. Tried my best here in Chicago but I just was unable to figure out the equation."

She added that she didn't currently have a timetable for her return to the court. 

"I am really disappointed," she said of missing the U.S. Open. "It's a tough time right now, but like all tough times, they don't last forever. ... Regardless, I'm wishing all players the best of luck this year. Be well—don't get hurt like I did. Stay safe, and everybody enjoy the U.S. Open, I know I'll be watching from home."

Williams, 41, was ousted in her first match at the Chicago Women's Open this past week, losing to Hsieh Su-wei in straight sets. The long-time star is currently ranked No. 147 in the WTA. Her low ranking also meant she didn't qualify to play at the Tokyo Olympics

If Williams' career is winding down, it has been an incredible one. She has won seven grand slam singles titles (five at Wimbledon, two at the U.S. Open), 14 grand slam doubles titles, four Olympic gold medals and a silver. 

While her sister Serena will go down as the greatest player in the history of the women's game, Venus Williams was undoubtedly a force in her prime and one of the most decorated players in history. Before Serena dominated the sport, it was Venus who won four grand slam titles between 2000-01. 

Injuries and Sjogren's syndrome shortened her prime, and she's largely struggled in recent years. But the story of women's tennis cannot be told without Venus Williams. 

Rafael Nadal announced his withdrawal from the 2021 U.S. Open, tennis' final Grand Slam tournament of the year, on Friday and confirmed he will sit out the remainder of the season because of a lingering foot injury.

"I am very sorry to announce that I won't be able to keep playing tennis during the 2021 season," Nadal said. "But as you know, I have been suffering too much with my foot for the last year now, and I missed a lot of important events for me."

Nadal fell short in his quest to capture a 14th French Open title earlier in the year, losing his semifinal with eventual champion Novak Djokovic in four sets.

The 35-year-old then sat out for nearly two months, missing Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics, before returning in early August for a U.S. Open Series event in Washington, D.C. He suffered a loss to Lloyd Harris in the round of 16 and didn't play in the subsequent warm-up tournaments.

Now Nadal will be sidelined until 2022, though he revealed his intention to return once healthy with hope for a "couple of beautiful years" to finish his career.

"The injury is nothing new," he said Friday. "It is the same injury I am having since 2005. In that moment the doctors were very negative about my future career, but honestly I was able to have a career I was unable to ever dream about, so I am confident I will recover again."

Longtime friendly rival Roger Federer, 40, has also withdrawn from the U.S. Open because of knee surgery, his third in the past 18 months.

It leaves Djokovic as the only member of tennis' Big Three heading to New York City as he attempts to become the first men's singles player to complete the calendar Grand Slam since Rod Laver in 1969.

He's already won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon, though he fell short in his attempt to win the Golden Slam with a semifinal loss to Alexander Zverev at the Tokyo Olympics in July.

Meanwhile, Nadal is a 20-time major champion, with the U.S. Open (four titles) ranking as his second-most successful Grand Slam tournament across a two-decade career.

The Australian Open, the first major of the 2022 campaign, is scheduled to begin Jan. 17. That gives the event's 2009 champion just under five months for recovery if he's going to make the trip to Melbourne Park.

Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from the National Bank Open with a left foot injury.

"I really wanted to play here a lot, but now is the moment to make a decision, and this is unfortunately the decision that I have taken," Nadal told reporters in Toronto.

"I have had this issue for a couple of months, as people know," Nadal continued. "Of course, it is not a happy situation after all the success that I had here in Canada, not being able to play this year after missing a year. It’s a tough one, but that's how it is today."

As Arash Madani of Sportsnet noted, this is the same injury that was aggravated in Nadal's French Open semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic. The 35-year-old also missed Wimbledon and the Summer Olympics, citing his reasoning on Twitter:

The Spaniard has won 20 Grand Slam singles titles.

He's a 13-time French Open champion and four-time U.S. Open winner who has also taken down Wimbledon twice and the Australian Open once.

Injuries have slowed down Nadal this year. He withdrew from the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament with a back injury in February. He also withdrew from the Miami Open in March, citing a need for his body to recover in time for the clay-court season.

Nadal's last appearance was at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C., where he fell to Lloyd Harris in the round of 16 last Thursday.

As for what's next, that's currently unknown, per Nadal to reporters:

I don't know. I'm gonna check. Just taken my decision. The main thing now is that I'm not able to play here, something that I feel bad for it. I really wanted to play here a lot, but now is the moment to take a decision, and that's unfortunately the decision that I taked, and probably in the next couple of days we're gonna know more.

The Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati is the next ATP tournament on the slate. The U.S. Open is scheduled to begin on Aug. 30.