“Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.” — Mark Twain
Rafael Nadal laid to relaxation all of the speak of an finish to his reign because the clay-court grasp stayed heading in the right direction for a record-extending twenty second males’s Grand Slam title by beating Novak Djokovic 6-2 4-6 6-2 7-6(4) within the French Open quarter-final on Tuesday.
A 13-time champion at Roland Garros, Nadal was gunning for revenge towards the world primary who beat him within the semi-finals final 12 months. He arrived in Paris following an injury-hampered preparation and survived a five-set thriller within the earlier spherical towards Felix Auger Aliassime. The Spaniard has solely misplaced three matches on the French Open since his first marketing campaign in 2005 and is aware of each inch of the Philippe Chatrier courtroom, reminding Djokovic precisely why he goes by the King of Clay moniker.
The Serbian has endured a troublesome 12 months himself, caught on 20 Grand Slam titles following his controversial disbarment from the Australian Open over his refusal to get vaccinated towards Covid-19. And issues received worse for the Serbian as Nadal got here out swinging and had the defending champion on the ropes.
Djokovic received the 88-minute second set however Nadal drew vitality from the partisan crowd to finish the match in 4 units to arrange a gathering with German Alexander Zverev for a spot within the ultimate.
MAGIC NIGHT
Following the match, Nadal insisted that he would by no means know for positive if any match at Roland Garros can be his final at a spot he’s adored.
“It’s a very emotional moment for me. Thank you everyone. It’s incredible, the support I get from you. Everyone knows how important it is for me to play here. It’s the most important tournament of my career,” Nadal stated on courtroom.
“One of those magic nights for me.”
He additionally hailed Djokovic as one of many biggest in historical past and stated enjoying towards him was all the time a problem.
Nadal didn’t make issues simple for himself as he surrendered a 3-0 lead within the second set to permit Djokovic get a foothold within the match. Nadal managed to carry for 4-4 however misplaced his serve at 5-4 as Djokovic levelled the match.
The Mallorcan began the third set in comparable method as the primary and raced right into a 4-1 lead earlier than wrapping it up on an unforced error from Djokovic. Djokovic regained the higher hand to open up a 3-0 lead within the fourth set however the Muscles from Mallorca broke again for 4-5 earlier than forcing a tiebreak to take the match and the spot within the semis.
In the post-match interview, Djokovic additionally hailed his conqueror: “I’m not surprised at all.”
“It’s not the first time that he is able, a few days after he’s injured and barely walking, to come out 100% physically fit.”
With inputs from the Associated Press and Reuters.
Source: www.financialexpress.com