At the beginning of 2009, world no. 1 Rafael Nadal took another big step towards ultimate tennis glory, conquering his first Australian Open title and holding three out of four Majors. Rafa dug deep in the last two encounters in Melbourne.The Spaniard spent nine and a half hours on the court against Fernando Verdasco and Roger Federer to claim five-setter triumphs and add another notable crown to his impressive collection at 22. Taking a week off, world no. 1 returned to action in Rotterdam and hoped for a better run than a year ago.The winner of only one indoor hard title in Madrid 2005, Nadal survived stern challenges against Simone Bolelli, Grigor Dimitrov and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, spending eight and a half hours on the court to lose energy and stamina.In the semis, the Spani …