Rafael Nadal

[Damian]

Madryt19: 89. ćwierćfinał M-1000.

[2] Rafael Nadal d. Frances Tiafoe 6-3 6-4

[arti]

[arti]

[Damian]

Nadal Ousts Wawrinka For 70th Masters 1000 SF

Spoiler:

Second seed to face Tsitsipas in the last four
Rafael Nadal will compete in his 11th Mutua Madrid Open semi-final after ousting former World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka 6-1, 6-2 on Friday.

It will be Nadal's record 70th ATP Masters 1000 semi-final, as he looks to extend his record number of trophies at the elite level to 34. The second seed has emerged victorious five times in Madrid, and he will try to move one step closer to another triumph on Saturday against reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Most ATP Masters 1000 Semi-finals

Player Masters 1000 SFs
1. Rafael Nadal 70
2. Roger Federer 64
3. Novak Djokovic 62
Wawrinka earned one of his three FedEx ATP Head2Head wins against the Spaniard at the Caja Magica four years ago. But Nadal was ruthless in the last match of the day, breaking the Swiss star's serve four times to advance after one hour and eight minutes. Nadal now leads Wawrinka 18-3 in their rivalry, and all 18 of his wins have come in straight sets.

Nadal has made the semi-finals of four consecutive tournaments (also Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo, Barcelona), and he is pursuing his first tour-level final since the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic). The 32-year-old is trying to capture an ATP Tour crown for the 16th consecutive year, dating back to his first title at 2004 Sopot.

Watch Live

Wawrinka entered the match having won all 30 of his service games this week, but he successfully held serve just three times from seven tries. Nadal won 56 per cent of his return points, doing well to keep the 34-year-old from stepping into the court and exerting his powerful game. The Spaniard consistently attacked with his backhand to push Wawrinka back before using angles to open up the court and dictate play.

The second set was closer — in score and in rallies — than the 26-minute opener, as Wawrinka attempted to play more aggressively. But Nadal was untroubled, pumping his left fist after Wawrinka missed a backhand chip wide on the Spaniard's first match point.

Nadal has won all seven sets he has played against Tsitsipas, leading their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-0. But this is the first time the #NextGenATP Greek has entered one of their match's as a Top 10 player. The Spaniard has broken the three-time ATP Tour titlist's serve 14 times in their three meetings, with Tsitsipas breaking just once. He is trying to reach his second Masters 1000 final after doing so at the Rogers Cup last year.

Did You Know?
This is the first tournament of 2019 in which we have four Top 10 semi-finalists.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-w ... 019-friday

[arti]

[Damian]

Madryt19: 70. półfinał M-1000.

[2] Rafael Nadal d. Stan Wawrinka 6-1 6-2

[arti]

World No. 2 Rafael Nadal is used to tallying titles rather than losses on clay. But to the Spaniard, leaving the Mutua Madrid Open after a semi-final loss to Stefanos Tsitsipas is normal, even if he has yet to lift a trophy this season, the longest it has taken him to triumph in a season since 2004.

“I think that it's more normal what is happening right now, than what happened in the past 14 years,” Nadal said. “I think I have tennis ahead of me. I have time ahead of me. I'll be able to try to win this kind of tournament that I was not able to win this year. And what I have to do is to be fit and to play properly and a high tennis level.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-m ... f-reaction

[Razing]

[arti]

Back for More: Defending champion Nadal is making his 15th consecutive appearance at the Foro Italico and he comes in with a 56-6 record (8-2 in finals) at the tournament. The Spaniard has advanced to the quarter-finals or better in 13 of his 14 previous visits to the Italian capital. Nadal will attempt to become the first player on the ATP Tour this year to defend a title from last season.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/rome-20 ... ing-report

[arti]

“Sometimes winning a title or not doesn't make a big difference. I didn't win a title. It's true I missed a couple of tournaments. At the same time it's true that when I was playing, I was close to winning it. I didn't play good enough to win, but I didn't play very bad. I am there,” Nadal said on Monday in Rome. “I have been in... four semi-finals in a row, since Indian Wells. But that's it. That's tennis: sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

“It's true that I lost a couple of matches that, playing good, probably I will win. But that's how it works.”

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-rome-2019-preview

[arti]

[arti]

[Razing]

[arti]

- Czasami to, czy zdobędziesz tytuł, czy nie, nie robi wielkiej różnicy - mówił na konferencji prasowej w stolicy Włoch, cytowany przez portal puntodebreak.com. - Na przykład w 2015 roku wygrałem turniej w Buenos Aires, ale teraz czuję się znacznie lepiej.

https://sportowefakty.wp.pl/tenis/82155 ... ej-roznicy

[Razing]

[Barty]

Nadal Cruises Past Chardy In Rome

Spoiler:

Nadal pursuing his ninth Rome title
World No. 2 Rafael Nadal wasted no time in his first match Thursday at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, defeating Frenchman Jeremy Chardy 6-0, 6-1 to reach the third round.

Nadal is now 7-0 at the Foro Italico when he wins a set 6-0, as he chases a record-extending ninth title at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament. The Spaniard is trying to break a tie with World No. 1 Novak Djokovic by winning his 34th Masters 1000 trophy.

"It was a good start today," Nadal said. "[I'm] happy with that victory and happy because it was one hour, and that's important for what's coming up."

Nadal will face big-hitting No. 14 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili later in the day due to Wednesday's rain washout. The Georgian advanced to the third round on Tuesday. The pair's only previous FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting on clay came at 2017 Roland Garros, with Nadal triumphing 6-0, 6-1, 6-0. Basilashvili pushed the Spaniard to four sets at last year's US Open.

"It's a tough one. He's a tough player, very dangerous. He hits the ball very strong," Nadal said. "He already won two great matches here so it's going to be a big challenge, but it's a good test for me."

Watch Live

It was possible that Nadal could face Dominic Thiem, who has beat him in three consecutive years on clay, in the quarter-finals if both players won their two matches Thursday. But Fernando Verdasco upset the Austrian in the second round.

You May Also Like: Verdasco Upsets Thiem In Rome; Struff Beats Cilic
Did You Know?
Nadal has now been inside the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings for 734 consecutive weeks, tying Roger Federer’s longest run from 2002-16. Former World No. 1 Jimmy Connors holds the record of 789 consecutive weeks in the Top 10.

https://www.atptour.com/en/news/nadal-c ... 9-thursday

[arti]

[Damian]

Rzym19: 90. ćwierćfinał M-1000.

[2] Rafael Nadal d. [14] Nikołoz Basilaszwili 6-1 6-0

[Razing]

[Damian]