Rafael Nadal suffered yet another clay court loss this season after eighth seeded Stan Wawrinka defeated him in straight set 7-6, 7-2 in the quarter-final of the Italian Open at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia.
Wawrinka will now face the world number two Roger Federer in a block-buster Swiss semi-final in Rome, the BBC reported.
After this defeat, the Spaniard will almost certainly not be one of the top four seeds for the French Open and would probably face a tougher draw in the Grand Slam starting from May 24.
'The King of Clay' appears to be losing his dominance on the clay court ahead of the French Open, losing five of his 22 matches on the surface this year. He had already been beaten in straight sets by Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray before this latest loss at the hands of
Wawrinka.
The Spaniard has been champion at the Roland Garros for nine of the last 10 years but has dropped down to number seven after his latest defeats.
