Rafael Nadal overcame illness to beat Denis Shapovalov in the Australian Open quarter-finals on Tuesday, holding his serve to see off the Canadian talent in five sets.
Nadal got off to the perfect start in the last-eight showdown at Melbourne Park, taking the first two sets 6-3 6-4 but the momentum soon swiftly turned in Shapovalov's favour.
Shapovalov, who saw off Andy Murray at Wimbledon last year, took the next two sets 6-4 6-3 with Nadal struggling with a stomach issue and the heat.
However, the Spanish tennis great - with 20 Grand Slam titles to his name - showed his mental and physical resilience to take the fifth and final set 6-3 at the Rod Laver Arena.
Nadal now has a record 21st Grand Slam title firmly in his sights, which would move him one clear of rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in his quest for history.
Nadal's last Australian Open triumph came back in 2009, when he beat Federer in the final.
It represented the fifth occasion that these two met on the court, with all but one match having gone the way of the Spanish 35-year-old.
Shapovalov appeared slightly unsettled in the opening set, with Nadal strolling to 6-3 inside just 39 minutes before the Canadian started to get tetchy.
Shapovalov launched a rant at the umpire at the beginning of the second set - complaining that his Australian Open rival was taking too long in between sets.
And it appeared the frustration got the better of him, as Nadal kept his cool to take the second set 6-4 and put him on course for another Grand Slam semi-final appearance.
But Nadal didn't have it all his own way, with Shapovalov showing his own grit by breaking at 5-4 on the Spaniard's serve to take the third set and keep this entertaining quarter-final contest alive.
The momentum then swung in Shapovalov's favour, with Nadal in all sorts of trouble in the fourth - having been forced to call on his trainer and appearing to struggle with a stomach bug and the soaring heat.
Shapovalov capitalised on Nadal's tough situation to force a decider at Melbourne Park, much to the delight of the fans at the Rod Laver Arena.
And it was in the deciding set that Nadal really showed his champions mentality, holding ooff break points during his opening service game before breaking the Canadian to race into a 3-0 lead.
And from there on in, Nadal held his nerve to clinch victory over more than four hours on court in the Melbourne heat.
