LONDON: Rafael Nadal staged a rousing comeback from two sets down to defeat gallant Russian Mikhail Youzhny on Thursday and reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
The Spanish second seed, the runner-up to Roger Federer in 2006, triumphed 4-6, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 in an enthralling three-hour contest and will now face seventh seed Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic for a place in the semi-finals.
It was the second five-setter for the French Open champion at the championships after seeing off Robin Soderling in the third round in a match which took four, rain-soaked days to complete.
His win was also the second Wimbledon in succession that he had had come back from a two-set deficit after staring defeat in the face against America's Robert Kendrick in the second round last year.
On Court Two, the so-called graveyard of the champions where Nadal had been relegated for the day, it was the 14th seeded Russian who looked set to play the role as undertaker to the Spaniard's Wimbledon dream.
The 25-year-old Youzhny had defeated the Spaniard in the quarter-finals of the US Open last year and he was virtually untroubled in the first two sets on Thursday wrapping up the opener in just 36 minutes and then grabbing an early break in the second.
He was two sets up after 81 minutes when Nadal went long with a backhand. The world number two had failed to carve out a single break point in those two sets, but he was unstoppable in the third breaking in the second and sixth games to reduce the deficit.
Youzhny needed treatment during the changeover for a back injury and his movement became more restricted as Nadal seized his opportuntiy to level the match at two sets apiece with breaks in the third and seventh games of the fourth set.
The Russian needed another bout of treatment for his injury and tried to calm himself by leaving a packed court for a toilet break.
But it was to no avail as Nadal broke in the third and fifth games of the final set to lead 4-1 against an exhausted opponent.
Nadal served a love game to go to 5-1 before Youzhny saved a match point in the seventh game. But there was no reprieve in the next game with the Spaniard taking the tie with a vicious crosscourt forehand.
