“Today you saw him close to the level he had in the past” – Alex de Minaur thinks Rafael Nadal may just be at his best again, as he reflects on his loss against the Spaniard

Alex De Minaur spoke about Rafael Nadal's current form, after going down against the Spaniard.

“Today you saw him close to the level he had in the past” – Alex de Minaur thinks Rafael Nadal may just be at his best again, as he reflects on his loss against the Spaniard

Alex de Minaur and Rafael Nadal (Via IMAGO)

Alex de Minaur faced a tough loss at the Manolo Santana Arena today against Rafael Nadal. Last week, De Minaur completely outplayed a rusty Nadal at Barcelona and was the favorite this time around as well. Seeing Nadal as the underdog in a clay court match is something that seldom happens, however, the Spanish crowd backed the homeland hero with loud cheers amidst mid-match drama and in between points. This, combined with Nadal’s added preparation time for the tournament, gave him a decisive edge in the match.

Alex de Minaur, in his post-match press conference, highlighted that today he witnessed a different Rafael Nadal to last week. In his quote, he said the Spanish legend was at a level similar to that of his past.

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In Barcelona he wasn’t prepared to play. Today you saw him close to the level he had in the past. He moved better. His level was very high from the beginning to the end.
Alex de Minaur at the post-match conference

Carlos Moya, Nadal’s coach had mentioned before today’s match that the latter would be in a better position to face De Minaur this time as he has had 8 days to prepare for it. During the Barcelona Open, Nadal was unable to focus a lot on strategizing against different opponents as he was giving necessary attention to his physical condition, coming back to play on clay after a long hiatus.

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This time, Nadal seemed to push himself more physically, as corroborated by De Minaur himself, which is a positive sign for the Spaniard. This also increases the probability of him playing in the French Open, where fans want to see him play most. If the Australian’s statement proves to be true, Nadal is going to pose a threat to everyone, including the top players, especially on clay.

Pedro Cachin upsets world number 21 Frances Tiafoe to set up clash with Rafael Nadal

It is no secret that Argentinian and Spanish players thrive on clay courts. Most of them spend thousands of hours just grinding it out on the red dirt, as the surface dominates the clubs in these countries. Americans and players from other parts of the world are more ‘all-court’ players, who are not necessarily clay-court specialists.

Pedro Cachin
Pedro Cachin (Credits: Tennis Channel)

This was demonstrated once again today, as Pedro Cachin of Argentina, ranked 91 in the world, defeated the 20th seed, Frances Tiafoe of USA, at the Madrid Open today. It was a hard-fought 7-6(1), 3-6, 6-4 victory which may not have been a surprise, but given the ranking difference, it was certainly an upset.

Cachin now faces Rafael Nadal who is resurging in form and aiming to dominate the clay court tournaments probably one last time. This is an interesting third-round matchup which will test both the gladiators.

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