Rafael Nadal was knocked out in the fourth round of the US Open. Frances Tiafoe stunned four-time champion Rafael Nadal 6-4 4-6 6-4 6-3 in New York. Aside from the Spaniard’s defeat, the match featured two former tennis legends questioning the size of Nadal’s tennis bag during the game.

In his round-of-16 match, Nadal sat for a changeover at 5-4 in the second set. He searched his racket bag for something. This made Navratilova and the courier suspicious of his bag as they guess what was inside.

Martina Navratilova and Jim Courier questioned Rafael Nadal’s tennis bag

During his match against Frances Tiafoe, Rafael Nadal was asked about his “huge” tennis bags. In the second set of their fourth-round match at the US Open, former tennis players, Martina Navratilova and Jim Courier, indicated how much stuff the Spaniard appeared to be carrying.

Navratilova praised Nadal for making sure he had everything he needed during the match, as she joked: “I bet you he’s got stuff nobody else has.”

Courier agreed with the 18-time Grand Slam champion, appreciating Nadal’s ability to stay prepared. He said, “Because he’s got massive bags and it can’t just be double back up and triple back up, there’s got to be some seriously secretive stuff in there.” 

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“Some pretty cool stuff in there,” the former world No 1 said. “Lots of gear, lots of wristbands, lots of shoes and shorts and socks and all that stuff. He’s ready for whatever. Such a prepared player.”

Concerns were also raised for Nadal after he took a lengthy off-court break following his first-set loss. The Spaniard had been gone for nearly eight minutes.

Rafael Nadal knocked out of the US Open

Nadal arrived in New York worried about the abdominal injury that forced him to withdraw from the Wimbledon semifinals. His lack of fitness was noticeable in how hard he worked to win his first three matches. The Spaniard’s level did not significantly improve in the fourth round, as Tiafoe stunned four-time champion Nadal 6-4 4-6 6-4 6-3 in New York.

Nadal’s bid for a record-extending 23rd major singles title came to an end with his defeat. Nadal led the fourth set 3-1 before Tiafoe stormed back. Then, Tiafoe won five straight games to book his place in the quarter-finals.

Tiafoe will play against Russian ninth seed Andrey Rublev in the US Open semi-finals.

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