Rafael Nadal - 20 wins, only trembled twice
Rafael Nadal is playing tonight (live on Sky from 11 p.m.) against Taylor Fritz for the title at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Indian Wells. And could extend his winning streak to 21 matches.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: Mar 20, 2022, 10:29 am
Anyone who can remember: Dominic Thiem asked a very fine rhetorical question before his quarter-final match at the US Open 2018 against Rafael Nadal. Nadal had battled Karen Khachanov over four tough sets the previous round, so the Spaniard looked vulnerable. And so Thiem asked: Was Nadal really ever in danger of losing this match against Khachanov?
Just.
Of course, this question can be applied wonderfully to the winning streak that the 21-time Grand Slam champion has been riding since the beginning of the year. It is 20 match successes that Rafael Nadal has accumulated en suite. And at least 18 of them weren't even close. Well, Denis Shapovalov could now raise his hand and point out that he was well on the way to catching up or turning around a two-set deficit at the Australian Open. He caught up, but didn't have a chance in the fifth set.
Medvedev misses chances
And so only two games stick in the memory that could actually have gone to the disadvantage of Nadal. Of course, Daniil Medvedev should have reserved the final of the Australian Open first. But if he had taken one of his break chances midway through the third set - who knows if Nadal would have been able to make a comeback.
And then there's Sebastian Korda, who looked like the winner with a spirited second-round performance at Indian Wells with a score of 5-2 in Act Three. Especially since Korda twice had the chance to end Nadal's series with his own serve. But he didn't succeed.
Nadal wins against Fritz in Acapulco
So, will Taylor Fritz be the one to thwart win number 21 and title number four this season? doubts are warranted. So far there has been only one game between the two, Nadal won straight in two sets in Acapulco in 2020. In addition, the American has never been in a final of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament, so it can be assumed that he will be nervous.
Which, in view of Nadal's further program, may apply to the entire competition: Because the next start of the matador is planned on sand in Monte Carlo. And as you can hear, the 35-year-old should feel reasonably comfortable on ashes.
Here is Rafael Nadal's winning streak in 2022
| competition | round | opponent | Result |
| Melbourne | AF | Ricardas Berankis | 6:2, 7:5 |
| Melbourne | vf | Tallon Griekspoor | Where |
| Melbourne | HF | Emil Ruusuvuori | 6:4, 7:5 |
| Melbourne | f | Maxime Cressy | 7:6(6), 6:3 |
| Australian Open | 1r | Marcos Giron | 6:1, 6:4, 6:3 |
| Australian Open | 2R | Yannick Hanfmann | 6:2, 6:3, 6:4 |
| Australian Open | 3R | Karen Khachanov | 6:3, 6:2, 3:6, 6:1 |
| Australian Open | AF | Adrian Mannarino | 7:6 (14), 6:2, 6:2 |
| Australian Open | vf | Denis Shapovalov | 6:3, 6:4, 4:6, 3:6, 6:3 |
| Australian Open | HF | Matteo Berretini | 6:3, 6:2, 3:6, 6:3 |
| Australian Open | f | Daniel Medvedev | 2:6, 6:7(5), 6:4, 6:4, 7:5 |
| Acapulco | 1r | Denis Kudla | 6:3, 6:2 |
| Acapulco | AF | Stefan Kozlov | 6-0, 6-3 |
| Acapulco | vf | Tommy Paul | 6-0, 7-6 (5) |
| Acapulco | HF | Daniel Medvedev | 6:3, 6:3 |
| Acapulco | f | Cameron Norrie | 6:4, 6:4 |
| Indian Wells | 2R | Sebastian Korda | 6:2, 1:6, 7:6 (3) |
| Indian Wells | 3R | Daniel Evans | 7:5, 6:3 |
| Indian Wells | AF | Reilly Opelka | 7:6 (3), 7:6 (5) |
| Indian Wells | vf | Nick Kyrgios | 7:6 (0), 5:7, 6:4 |
| Indian Wells | HF | Carlos Alcaráz | 6:4, 4:6, 6:3 |
| Indian Wells | f | TaylorFritz | ? |
Here the individual tableau in Indian Wells
iwmap