“I am just excited to be in the semi-finals and I hope to be ready to try my best,” says Rafael Nadal after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in a must-win encounter

“I am just excited to be in the semi-finals and I hope to be ready to try my best,” says Rafael Nadal after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in a must-win encounter
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Rafael Nadal was excited to be back in the semifinals in London

Rafael Nadal delivered an outstanding performance in the final set against Stefanos Tsitsipas to book his place in the last 4 of the Nitto ATP Finals. The Spaniard outlasted the defending champion, Stefanos Tsitsipas in 3 sets to progress into the semifinals where he will face Daniil Medvedev on Saturday. With the match level at 1-1, Nadal delivered a masterclass in the final set as he outplayed the Greek on all fronts, breaking him thrice during the set.

Rafael Nadal was thrilled to be back in the semifinals of the Nitto ATP Finals after 5 years and hoped to be ready to face Daniil Medvedev in 2 days time. “To be in the semi-finals here, in the last tournament of the year, is an important thing, I am happy for that and I am looking forward to the semi-finals against Daniil Medvedev,” said Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard finished 2nd in the Group London 2020 behind Dominic Thiem, who had earlier defeated him in a thrilling 3 set encounter.

Rafael Nadal thrilled to be back in the semifinals

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Nadal will face Medvedev in the semifinals on Saturday

Rafael Nadal reiterated that he was very happy to be back in the semifinals at the O2 Arena. He said that he narrowly missed out last year, and was unlucky. Last year, Rafael Nadal had the same of number of wins as Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev, but the latter progressed because of a better set win-loss ratio.

“I still won two matches like last year,” Nadal said. “Last year, I was a little bit unlucky not to be in the semi-finals. The year before I had to pull out. It is always difficult to play here against the best players in the world every single day [at the] end of the season. Most of the time, you get here a little bit tired, but this year is a little bit different. I am just excited to be in the semi-finals and I hope to be ready to try my best.”

Speaking about the 2nd set in particular, when Tsitsipas broke the Spaniard to win the set, Rafael Nadal said that it changed the shape of the match. “I think I played quite well for such a long time,” Nadal said. “That game at 5-4 in the second [set] affected [the match] a little bit. I lost the second [set] and then I was able to have the break in third [set] earlier, but then he broke me back.”

“I thought I was winning my serves quite comfortably until that moment. After that, everything changed a little bit. I think I started to serve a little bit worse but, in general terms, it [was] a very positive match for me,” the Spaniard concluded on a positive note.

Also Read: Nitto ATP Finals: Rafael Nadal outlasts the defending champion, Stefanos Tsitsipas to book a place in the semifinals