China Open Tennis 2014 scores update revealed that Martin Klizan of Slovakia pulled off a huge upset win against Rafael Nadal of Spain in the quarterfinals of the Beijing Tournament on Friday.
Klizan, a qualifier in the event, leaned on his power hits to score a monumental win against Nadal 6-7 (7), 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the semifinals of the tournament.
"For me, this victory was the best night in my life," Klizan said via ESPN. "I'm just very happy that I beat a legend."
Nadal is coming off a two-month layoff after sustaining a wrist injury, which forced him to skip his title defense at the 2014 US Open and his country's campaign in the 2014 Davis Cup World Group tournament.
The 14-time Grand Slam champion admitted in a China Open Tennis 2014 scores interview after the game that he lost fair and square because he has yet to regain his confidence and old rhythm following his long layoff, but he vowed to continue working hard in order to bounce back soon.
"I am going to work hard with the right attitude to play better than what I did today," Nadal said. "I will be happy if I finish the season and I am able to take a one-and-a-half-week holiday, then practice for one month in perfect conditions to try to start the next season with positive feelings."
With the win, Klizan arranged a semis showdown with Tomas Berdych of Czech Republic, who scored a 6-1, 6-4 victory against John Isner of United States in their quarterfinal match.
Meanwhile, tennis superstars Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will collide in the other semifinal match after defeating their respective foes on Friday.
Djokovic moved on to the semis with an impressive 6-2, 6-4 win against Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria, while Murray, a wildcard participant in the tournament, defeated reigning US Open champion Marin Cilic 6-1, 6-4.
Murray will be a heavy underdog heading into their showdown as the Serb holds a 13-8 advantage in their head-to-head matchup, but he vowed to play at his best to score an upset against Djokovic, who is 22-0 all-time at the China Open Tennis tournament.
"I haven't played him here, but his form here; he's never lost, which is very impressive. I'm aware it's going to be an extremely difficult match tomorrow," Murray said in a China Open Tennis 2014 scores update.
