World No.21 Grigor Dimitrov's Australian Open campaign came to a brutal conclusion, with the Bulgarian star far from his best as he battled through injury.
Dimitrov went down 2-6 6-4 6-1 6-2, to 27-year-old Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev, who is currently competing in his debut Grand Slam.
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Dimitrov looked in control of the match after romping through the first set, twice breaking Karatsev to take it 6-2.
But it turned quickly in the second when the Bulgarian started to struggle with back spasms and by the third set it was clear that the match was all but over.
At one stage he even walked off the court mid-point, conceding the third set.
Dimitrov looked towards his box and shook his head, appearing to suggest to his camp that he didn't have a lot left in the tank.
"There's not much point playing like this," said Todd Woodbridge on commentary for Nine at the time.
It wasn't long after that before Dimitrov's inevitable exit was confirmed after he bravely played the fourth set to its conclusion.
The victory for the 114th-ranked qualifier from Russia made him the first man in the professional era to reach the semi-finals in his Grand Slam debut.
But all eyes were on Dimitrov after he was visited by a trainer before taking a medical timeout for treatment on his back. He had a quick resurgence, but it ended just as quickly.
"Listen, there's no point to hide anything or whatever, I think I just got a back spasm yesterday at some point, and that was it," he said after the match.
"We couldn't fix it on time. It happened, I think, early in the match. It kept on progressing, and it was unstoppable. But that's enough about me. It's his day.
"That's the sport. What can you do, I mean, just super unlucky.
"There's not much else I can say, really. I wish I could give you more information. I felt great overall in the past days.
"I felt I was on a good path. We've done great work. I was very positive and upbeat for whatever, whoever I had to play, and circumstances, sport.
"That's it. Today was just – I couldn't put my socks on before the match, so I knew it was going to be a tough moment for me. I tried, but it was not good enough."
Dimitrov admitted there was little he could after being caught by surprise with just how damaging back spasms can be to an overall performance.
"I've played with a cracked toe and other things, but having a back spasm, everything goes through that part of the body, all rotation, reactions," he said.
"I love moving around the court, but when I'm not capable to use my motricity, my speed, my legs, my reaction, just everything becomes very insignificant. Whether you serve or hit a forehand or whatever, it's just electricity kind of goes through your body."
– with AP
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