"Coming from 0-2 down against Rafael Nadal at Australian Open" - Stefanos Tsitsipas names the toughest match that he has played in his career

Facing Rafael Nadal at the 2021 Australian Open accounted for the toughest match that Stefanos Tsitsipas has played to date if his answer during an 'Ask Me Anything' session on social media is anything to go by.

The Greek, who will kick off his 2023 US Open campaign on Monday (28 August), replied that it was his quarterfinal match at the 2020 Australian Open against 22-time Major winner that tested his physical and mental strength the most.

"Coming back from 0-2 down against Rafael Nadal at the Australian Open," the Greek said in reply to a fan on Reddit

A screen capture of Stefanos Tsitsipas' answer on social media

The aforementioned match was a great escape from Stefanos Tsitsipas, who was forced to come from two sets to love down to defeat Nadal in their last-eight clash. The Spaniard, on his part, had been on a roll at the tournament, as he proceeded to win his first four matches without dropping a single set.

Rafael Nadal looked all set for yet another commanding victory when he took on the fifth-seeded youngster, winning the first two sets 6-3 and 6-2. It should be noted, however, that he was nursing a back injury back then. As the third set went into a tiebreaker, he started experiencing more and more niggles, which eventually led him to miss a smash on a key point.

Tsitsipas eventually took the tiebreaker 7-4 and never took his foot off the gas, winning the next two sets with a tight scoreline of 6-4 and 7-5. The match wore on for around four hours, and also left very little in the Greek's tank as he succumbed to his arch-nemesis Daniil Medvedev without much of a fight in the semifinals.

Rafael Nadal can make his ATP tour comeback in 2024

Rafael Nadal will most likely be playing his final season on the ATP tour in 2024

The Spaniard's 2023 season was interrupted a few months ago after he picked up a hip injury during a practice session. He underwent arthroscopic surgery to rectify the problem later, though, and will likely make his comeback at some point next year.

Rafael Nadal only played four matches this year, losing three of them to Cameron Norrie, Alex de Minaur, and Mackenzie McDonald respectively. The last of those three losses came in straight sets at this year's Australian Open, where the Spaniard had reigned supreme in 2022.

The Spaniard was on a sabbatical after his Melbourne campaign, but the tennis universe did expect him to make his comeback during the European clay season.

However, they were in for a shock as he withdrew from all of the ATP Masters 1000 tournaments on clay before withdrawing from Roland Garros as well. In his statement on Roland Garros' social media, he also disclosed that the 2024 ATP Tour season would most likely be his last, much to the dismay of his most devout fans.

It does seem that Rafael is riding the last lap of his career and would like to close out on a high before hanging up his shoes.