Rafael Nadal recovers from losing first set to edge past Grigor Dimitrov and reach semi-finals of Australian Open Asked about this forehand in his post-match press conference, Dimitrov became so emotional that he could barely speak. "What can I say?" he choked out. It hurts. You know, it's just a tough shot, a tough choice. I'm sure I could have done something different. But in a match everything comes down to a split of a second. Nadal's reaction was very different when he was asked about the same shot. "I was so lucky," he replied, chuckling with relief. At the end of the third set, Nadal needed to have the tape covering the palm of his left hand replaced. Asked if he was lacking his usual touch and control, he replied "Especially with the serve. The rest of the things are more or less fine. But on the serve I feel like I am going to lose the racket. This was reflected in his average service speed, which stood at only just over 100mph on the first serve - at least 10 per cent lower than usual. Dimitrov wept into his towel after missing one of his favoured inside-out forehands to finish the match. Yet this tournament has nevertheless been a breakthrough for a man who had come in with a losing record in grand slams. Having only ever reached the third round once before in a major, Dimitrov - who is 22 - proved that he is finally beginning to deliver on his promise. When the next set of rankings are announced on Monday, he will climb into the top 20 for the first time. "Tennis is not a sprint," he said after the match. It's a marathon sport. When I come out on the court or in the gym every day, I don't work for the day after. I look in the future. Nadal's victory put a stop to a sequence of five successive quarter-finals - in both men's and women's draws - that went to the lower-ranked player. The run started with Eugenie Bouchard's win over Ana Ivanovic in yesterday, and continued with Tomas Berdych beating David Ferrer, Stan Wawrinka beating Novak Djokovic, Dominika Cibulkova beating Simona Halep and Agnieszka Radwanska beating Victoria Azarenka.