Defending champion Nadal knocked out from French open

Rafael Nadal's four-year Roland Garros reign came to a sensational end at the hands of feuding rival Robin Soderling on Sunday as the race for the 2009 title was thrown wide open. Nadal, bidding for a record fifth successive French Open crown, slumped to his first ever defeat here after winning all of his 31 matches since his 2005 debut.

His 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-4, 7-6 (7/2) fourth round loss was made harder to swallow as it came against a man he described as one of the most unpopular in the locker room after an acrimonious Wimbledon clash in 2007. "It's not a tragedy, I had to lose one day. I must accept my defeats with the same level of calm that I accept my victories," said Nadal, who had routed Soderling 6-1, 6-0 at the Rome Masters just a month ago.