Nadal not focused on Grand Slam record

Spanish tennis great will contest his seventh semi-final at Australian Open on Friday

MELBOURNE:

Rafa Nadal said there would be no regrets if he failed to claim another Grand Slam title after moving within two wins of a record 21st at the Australian Open.

The Spanish great survived a five-set scare against Canada's Denis Shapovalov at Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday to reach his seventh semi-finals at Melbourne Park.

With Novak Djokovic deported before the tournament and Roger Federer recovering from knee surgery, Nadal has a chance to grab the all-time record outright at Melbourne Park but he said it would not matter to him if he missed out.

"I don't hope (for) anything. I just keep going," he told reporters. "In terms of what can happen in the future, honestly I really don't care that much.

"I'm not going to be frustrated if Novak or Roger finishes the career with more Grand Slams than me, no? I mean, let's enjoy the situation that we did, every one of us, we did very special things in our sport."

From being worried his career was in jeopardy a couple of months ago as he struggled to recover from a foot problem, Nadal will contest his 36th Grand Slam semi-final on Friday.

Having the extra day's break will be a huge blessing for the 35-year-old after his four-hour slog in the heat against 14th seed Shapovalov. With 22-year-old Shapovalov roaring back from two sets down to take the match into a fifth, Nadal said it was a "little bit of a miracle" that he managed to outlast the Canadian.

"I was destroyed, honestly, physically," said Nadal, who took a medical timeout off court after Shapovalov took the fourth set. "But my serve worked well, and for me, every game that I was winning with my serve was a victory.

"Of course in the beginning of the fifth set ... I was very worried. But more than (that), I thought (it was) going to be super difficult to win that match.  But here I am ... it's an amazing news, no?"