Rafael Nadal vs. the Field: Who Can Take Down the Raging Bull?

Rafael Nadal has been an unstoppable vanguard through the first four rounds of the Australian Open—his stats are unfathomable, and his drive is unchallenged.

He seems to commit unforced errors less often than officials call penalties in the annual NHL All-Star Game. Nadal has as many double faults on his tournament résumé as a serving machine.

But the most telling piece of information is not a stat—it's how well his opponents have played and still been discarded off the court by the "Raging Bull."

In the second round, 92nd-ranked Croatian Roko Karanusic played a wonderful match—he committed fewer unforced errors than Nadal and won 65 percent of the points when he came to the net.

But in the match, a 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 clinic by Nadal that lasted a mere 97 minutes, Karanusic found out the hard way that there wasn't much he could do against the Bull.

In the third round, seasoned veteran Tommy Haas of Germany stepped into the ring. The 30-year-old played his best tennis in several years and could have possibly slain any of the other giants, but it was his luck that he had to face Nadal. The Bull took his best shot with style and ran to another three-set win.

It was Nadal's fortune that he got 13th-seeded Fernando Gonzalez in the fourth round. Gonzalez had just come off a legendary five-set win over Richard Gasquet. Although Gonzalez played well here, he often went for the wrong big shot and committed 35 unforced errors.

How is it that Nadal has never won an Australian Open?

There are seven men left in his way, and they all want a shot at the Bull.

First Challenger: Roger Federer (ATP No. 2)

Federer may have been knocked from his perch by the Bull, but that just makes the Fed-Express even hungrier to get it back. Despite Federer having a horrific record against Nadal, he is 3-2 all-time on hard courts.

Keys to Victory: Federer must play a clean match against Nadal, something he hasn't managed since Wimbledon in 2006. He also must control points with his opportunistic serve and exploit Nadal's backhand with heavy forehands.

Second Challenger: Novak Djokovic (ATP No. 3)

The Joker owns one career Grand Slam title, and it's the Australian Open. He is an outstanding hard court player that must get through both Andy Roddick and Roger Federer to have a shot at Nadal.

Keys to Victory: If Djokovic makes it to the championship, he will have played a set of the world's elite—Federer, Roddick, and Baghdatis. He must use his immense fire and play an aggressive game against Nadal. But Djokovic must be smart when he is aggressive.

Third Challenger: Andy Roddick (ATP No. 9)

A-Rod owns a tool that could be worrisome to the Nadal camp. His gigantic serve and forehand combination makes for some very short points. The Bull thrives in longer points. However, Roddick first must beat Djokovic, and that is no small task. 

Keys to Victory: Roddick first must maintain his inhuman 10.5 aces per double fault ratio. He must also use his big serve to control points and set up the big forehand.

Fourth Challenger: Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (ATP No. 7)

Tsonga has only made it to a Grand Slam final once, and that was last year at the Oz. He is the biggest threat to Nadal reaching the Big Dance. He plays big and has an unrelenting motor.

Keys to Victory: Tsonga will have to play the match of his life in the semis to derail the Bull, but Nadal will remember his straight sets loss to Tsonga here last year.   

Nadal has never won a Grand Slam that was played on hard courts. Can he respond to the pressure of everybody now wanting a piece of him, instead of the Fed-Express? The true tests start now, as Frenchman Gilles Simon waves the red at Nadal.