French Open: Rafael Nadal makes a sentence - and beats Schwartzman confidently in the end
Rafael Nadal has reached the semi-finals at the French Open 2021. The 13-time Roland Garros champ wobbled in the meantime, but got back on track in time.
by Florian Goosmann
last edit: Jun 09, 2021, 06:18 pm
Nadal (ATP No. 3) beat Diego Schwartzman (ATP No. 10) 6: 4, 3: 6, 6: 4 and 6: 0 and thus made it into the round of the last four players. He's waiting there for the winner of the game between Novak Djokovic and Matteo Berrettini (live here from 8 p.m.) .
However, Nadal had to fight - almost more than the clear result in the end says.
In the first round, both players exchanged a break, at 4: 3 for Nadal Schwartzman initially fended off three break chances, but then put a double fault and a forehand out of bounds. The Spaniard equalized a quick 3-0 in the second set, but gave up his service game to 4-6. And seemed unsettled: the forehand scattered, and Schwartzman showed himself to be the more sovereign player at the beginning of the third set - even if everything stayed in line until the 4: 4.
Nadal and the right intensity at the right time
Then Nadal showed why he is Nadal: a few more steps, no backhand too much and the right "intensity" at the right time, which he likes to mention. The break to 5: 4 was ultimately the preliminary decision in the entire match. Because in the fourth round Schwartzman couldn't get a foot on the ground, while Nadal finally played comfortably "Mill open, mill closed". In the end, the Argentine only made five points in the fourth set.
Nadal put his record against Schwartzman to 11: 1 - the only defeat came from last autumn in Rome. Whereupon Nadal had prepared to win the following French Open without losing a set.
In the semifinals of the 2021 edition, there could now be a blast against Novak Djokovic if he wins against Matteo Berrettini. As a reminder: Last year, Nadal won the final of the French Open against the world number one with 6: 0, 6: 2 and 7: 5.
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