ATP Finals London: Rafael Nadal with a smooth opening win against Andrey Rublev
Rafael Nadal started the 2020 ATP Finals with an impressive performance: The Spaniard defeated Andrey Rublev 6: 3 and 6: 4. On Tuesday, Nadal will meet Dominic Thiem .
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Nov 15, 2020, 10:37 pm
Rafael Nadal avoided a false start at the ATP Finals in London like last year: The Spaniard, who has never won the year-end ATP tournament in his career, definitely defeated Andrey Rublev 6-3 and 6-4. The result was not quite as clear as at the only meeting in New York in 2017 (at that time, Nadal was ahead with 6: 1, 6: 2, 6: 2), Nadal's victory was at risk until the middle of the first Sentence. Since the world number two made the first break of the evening.
In the second half, too, Nadal picked up his opponent's service game right from the start. And didn't look back anymore. In the end, Rublev did not have a single break chance. The favorite acted too forcefully, especially with the forehand.
Rublev has already won five tournaments this year. After resuming gaming alone, he was able to win the title in Hamburg, St. Petersburg and Vienna. Nadal didn't give the debutant a chance. After 77 minutes of play, Nadal converted his second match point.
In the first individual match of the day, Dominic Thiem prevailed against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the reissue of the 2019 final with 7: 6 (5), 4: 6 and 6: 3. The Austrian will meet Rafael Nadal on Tuesday, for Tsitsipas and Rublev it's all about everything in the direct duel.
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