‘Incredible’ Rafael Nadal draws inspiration from Real Madrid to stage a spirited comeback against David Goffin at the Madrid Open
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Rafael Nadal
In the best match of the tournament so far, 5-time champion Rafael Nadal was pushed to the limit but came out as strong as ever to beat David Goffin in the Round of 16 in three sets 6-3,5-7,7-6(9) at the 2022 Madrid Open. Nadal had two match points himself in the second set but didn’t convert them and instead got broken twice. He then had to save 4 match points in the third set tie-breaker.
With this win, Nadal was extended his lead to 405 Masters 1000 wins and has entered a record 99th quarterfinal at the Masters level. He is eyeing to equal Novak Djokovic’s record of 38 Masters titles.
Against Goffin, Rafa started off slowly and got broken but soon bounced back and got a break’s lead. He was quick to wrap things up quickly in the first set and won it 6-3. He carried the same momentum in the second set and looked in complete control. He even took a break’s lead and served for the set. But despite having multiple match points, courtesy Goffin’s clutch game, Rafa went down a double break and lost the set 5-7.
The third was closely fought and both players managed to hold serve. After long baseline exchanges and heated rallies, the set eventually went into the tie-breaker where Goffin was a better player at the start. He even lead 6-4 and had two match points which he failed to convert. After saving a total of 4 match points, Nadal displayed his clutch mentality to take the tiebreaker 11-9 and eventually the set.
‘The spirit Real Madrid have is just incredible and for me, it has been an inspiration’: Rafael Nadal
Nadal is a huge Real Madrid and went to Santiago Bernabéu last night to watch Real Madrid clutch past Manchester City in the Champions League semifinal. After his win over Goffin, Rafa spoke about how the spirit of Real Madrid inspired him to do well and expressed his disappointment in not finishing the match in straight sets.
“The spirit Real Madrid have is just incredible and for me, today in some way has been an inspiration. It was a tough match, David played at such a high level but at the same time I’m not completely happy cuz I think I had to finish the match in straight sets without a doubt,” he said.
On Friday, Nadal will face either Cameron Norrie or Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinal.
Also read: ‘Unfair?’ Rafael Nadal receives a ‘time violation’ for taking ‘too much’ time at the Madrid Open
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Lakshya Chopra
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