Rafael Nadal

[Damian]

[Damian]

Nadal Books Tsitsipas Final Clash In Barcelona

Spoiler:

Top seed to face Tsitsipas in final
Rafael Nadal made it through to his 12th Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell final on Saturday with a 6-3, 6-2 win against countryman Pablo Carreno Busta.

The 11-time champion landed 13 forehand winners and claimed four service breaks to extend his unbeaten ATP Head2Head record against Carreno Busta to 8-0. Nadal made quick starts to both sets and reached his 69th clay final after 89 minutes (60-8).

Nadal is chasing his 12th title at the ATP 500 event. The 60-time clay-court titlist is the only player to lift 12 or more tour-level trophies at the same tournament, having claimed 13 titles at Roland Garros.

How To Watch

Nadal owns a combined 23-1 record in Barcelona semi-final and final matches. The Spaniard’s only loss in Barcelona after reaching the final four came in 2019, when he fell to eventual champion Dominic Thiem.

The top seed will meet Stefanos Tsitsipas for the trophy in a repeat of the 2018 Barcelona final. On that occasion, Nadal defeated the first-time ATP Tour finalist 6-2, 6-1.

The 34-year-old will be seeking revenge for his loss to the Greek in this year’s Australian Open quarter-finals, when Tsitsipas became only the second player to defeat Nadal from two sets down at a Grand Slam. Nadal owns a 6-2 ATP Head2Head advantage against the reigning Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters champion.

You May Also Like: Tsitsipas Continues Hot Streak, Returns To Barcelona Final
Nadal attacked Carreno Busta’s backhand and dictated rallies with his forehand to charge into a 5-1 lead in the first set. The 20-time Grand Slam champion dropped serve when he tried to serve out the set at 5-1 and was forced to save three break points on his second attempt as Carreno Busta raised his level.

After clinching the opener, Nadal made another impressive start to the second set. The Mallorcan showcased his impressive court coverage skills and used his forehand to overpower his opponent. Nadal reached his 12th Barcelona final (11-0) when Carreno Busta struck a backhand return into the tramline.

Carreno Busta was attempting to reach his second final of the European clay swing. The 29-year-old captured his fifth ATP Tour crown earlier this month at the AnyTech365 Andalucia Open in Marbella.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-c ... 1-saturday

[Bombardiero]

[Bombardiero]

[Damian]

[Bombardiero]

Phenomenadal.

[Damian]

[Damian]

[Damian]

[Damian]

[Damian]

[Damian]

Nadal Saves M.P., Makes It A Dozen In Barcelona

Spoiler:

Top seed wins 61st tour-level title on clay
Rafael Nadal saved one championship point on Sunday to defeat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-7(6), 7-5 and collect a record-extending 12th Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell trophy.

The top seed was one point from defeat at 4-5, 30/40 in the decider and he carried the momentum from that moment to win three straight games and overcome the Monte-Carlo champion in the longest ATP Tour match of the year (3h38m). This is the second tournament where Nadal has captured 12 or more titles. The 13-time Roland Garros champion, who failed to convert two championship points at 5-4 in the second set, will return to No. 2 in the FedEx ATP Rankings on Monday.

Rafael Nadal - Most Titles By Tournament

Rank Event Titles
1 Roland Garros 13
2 Barcelona 12
3 Monte-Carlo 11
4 Rome 9
T5 Madrid 5 (4 Clay, 1 Hard)
Canada 5
For the first time, Nadal has lifted the Barcelona title after dropping more than one set (3). The 34-year-old, who also needed three sets in his opening two matches, raised his game as the tournament progressed and fought hard to get past Tsitsipas, who entered his second Barcelona final (0-2) with a 9-0 match record (17-0 sets) on clay in 2021.

The five-time year-end World No. 1 gained revenge for his loss to the Greek in the Australian Open quarter-finals this February. On that occasion, Tsitsipas joined Fabio Fognini and Roger Federer as only the third man to beat Nadal from two sets down.

Nadal extends his ATP Head2Head advantage against Tsitsipas to 7-2. The 20-time Grand Slam champion also beat Tsitsipas in the 2018 final in Barcelona, where Tsitsipas made his debut in an ATP Tour championship match. This was only the third final meeting between Top 5 players in tournament history.

Top 5 Barcelona Final Meetings

Year Champion Runner-Up
1973 Ilie Nastase (No. 1) Manuel Orantes (No. 3)
2008 Rafael Nadal (No. 2) David Ferrer (No. 5)
2021 Rafael Nadal (No. 3) Stefanos Tsitsipas (No. 5)
Nadal also improved his unbeaten record to 12-0 in Barcelona finals. The Mallorcan now owns an Open Era record 61 tour-level trophies on clay, placing him 12 titles clear of second-placed Guillermo Vilas (49).

Nadal found himself under consistent pressure on serve in the first set with Tsitsipas stepping inside the baseline to take short balls early and force his opponent into defensive positions. The top seed was able to find big serves and powerful forehands under pressure to save five of the six break points he faced and he won four consecutive games from 2-4 to become the first player to take a set off Tsitsipas this year on clay.


Nadal once again recovered from a break down in the second set and earned two championship points on Tsitsipas’ serve at 5-4. The 2019 Nitto ATP Finals champion charged the net to stay alive and rallied from 2/4 in the tie-break to force a decider. Tsitsipas defended well in the tie-break, introduced drop shots to break up play and benefitted from a Nadal double fault at 6/6 to prolong his hopes of a maiden Barcelona trophy.

In a tight third set, Nadal was forced to save the first break point — a championship point — at 4-5. The Spaniard clipped the net with a defensive backhand early in the rally and he drove a forehand up the line to remain in contention. Nadal piled the pressure on his opponent in the next game and extracted back-to-back errors with depth on his returns. Nadal clinched the title in the next game on his third championship point when Tsitsipas narrowly missed the target on his forehand. Nadal fell to the clay and roared in celebration.

Tsitsipas, who leads the FedEx ATP Race To Turin, was aiming to lift his maiden ATP 500 trophy. The 22-year-old claimed his first ATP Masters 1000 title last week at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and tied Andrey Rublev’s Tour-leading mark of 26 wins this season by reaching the Barcelona championship match.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-t ... 021-sunday

[Damian]

[Kamileki]

Szósty raz Rafa wygrywa turniej po obronie meczowych w trakcie, a drugi raz po obronie meczbola w finale (Rzym 2006 był dotychczas jedynym takim przypadkiem):

1. 2006 Rzym
2. 2009 Indian Wells
3. 2010 Tokio
4. 2014 Rio Open
5. 2017 China Open
6. 2021 Barcelona

[Bombardiero]

[Bombardiero]

[Bombardiero]

[Nando]

[Nando]

[Kamileki]