Tennis player Rafael Nadal was surprisingly eliminated on Wednesday in the second round of the Australian Open in Melbourne. American Mackenzie McDonald beat the Spanish defending champion in three sets 6-4, 6-4, 7-5. Nadal seemed to be struggling with a hip injury and requested, among other things, a medical time-out, but it is still unclear what exactly the 35-year-old tennis player was suffering from.
Midway through the second set, Nadal limped off after a point and knelt on the court for a moment, only to later summon his trainer and request medical treatment. He returned to continue the game, but his complaints continued to visibly bother him.
The first-seeded Nadal won the Australian Open for the second time in his career last year. He is the record holder with 22 wins in Grand Slam tournaments. For McDonald, the tournament continues in the third round with a match against the winner of the duel between Japanese Yoshihito Nishioka and Czech Daribor Svrcina.
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