Despite Qualifying For The Semifinals Of The Australian Open, Nadal Doesn't Care About Grand Slam Record

Rafael Nadal (Twitter @australianopen)

JAKARTA - Rafael Nadal says he will have no regrets if he misses out on a Grand Slam title as he draws closer to his record 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open.

The Spaniard survived a five-set battle against Canadian Denis Shapovalov at Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday to reach his seventh semifinal in Melbourne.

While Novak Djkovic was deported before the tournament and Roger Federer is still recovering from knee surgery, Nadal has more chance of setting an all-time record. However, he said it wouldn't matter to him if it didn't happen.

"I didn't expect anything. I just kept going," Nadal said.

"As for what could happen in the future, I honestly don't really care."

"I wouldn't be frustrated if Novak or Roger ended their careers with more Grand Slams than I did."

"I mean let's enjoy the situation we are in, each one of us, we are doing very special things in our sport."

From fearing his career was in jeopardy months ago as he struggled to recover from a foot problem, Nadal is now set to compete in the semifinals of his 36th Grand Slam on Friday.

The extra day's rest was a huge blessing for the 35-year-old after working hard for more than four hours against 14th seed Shapovalov.

Shapovalov came from two sets down to take the match into the fifth decider. Nadal said it was "a bit of a miracle" that he managed to tell the 22-year-old.

"I was devastated, to be honest, physically," said Nadal, who took an off-court medical timeout after Shapovalov snatched the fourth set.

"But my serve is working well, and for me, every match I win with my serve is a win."

"Of course at the start of the fifth set… I was really worried."

"But more than that, I think it will be very difficult to win that game."

"But here I am... This is great news, isn't it?"