Nadal vows to reverse fortunes

Rafael Nadal did his best to shrug off his latest Grand Slam setback on Tuesday and pledged to fight on - despite the "crazy", go-for-broke tennis now played by some of his rivals.

The 14-time Grand Slam champion, just three behind all-time leader Roger Federer, bombed out in the opening round of the Australian Open to fellow Spaniard Fernando Verdasco.

In only his second first-round loss at a major tournament, Nadal, 29, fought for four hours, 41 minutes before Verdasco prevailed 7-6 (6), 4-6, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-2.