Heartbreak for injured Rafa Nadal as he quits Australian Open to leave Maran Cilic facing Kyle Edmund in semi-final
Visibly struggling Spaniard retires hurt in decisive fifth set to bring back memories of Australian Open clash with Andy Murray in 2010
Top-ranked Nadal saved five break points in the last game before Cilic broke his serve, then went to shake hands with the umpire and his opponent.
Number six seed Cilic advanced with a score of 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 2-0, retired.
Cilic will play a semi-final against Number 49-ranked Kyle Edmund, who earlier beat Grigor Dimitrov in four sets.
It was only the second time Nadal had retired during a grand slam match – the last time was also an Australian Open quarter-final, in 2010 against Andy Murray.
On Tuesday night, he needed a medical timeout after going down 4-1 in the fourth set, getting treatment on his upper right leg and hip.
He returned but was clearly bothered by the injury, limping and trying to stretch between points.
Cilic had only previously beaten Nadal once in their six previous matches – in their first match in 2009.
