Four-Hour Training! Nadal Defeats Navone in Bastad Quarterfinal Marathon

 

●The former world number 1 will play against qualifier Ajdukovic in the last four of the ATP 250

On Friday at the Nordea Open in Bastad, Rafael Nadal overcame a tough physical test against Mariano Navone, drawing on his usual mental strength.

The former PIF ATP No. 1 fought to a 6-7(2), 7-5, 7-5 triumph over Navone in a thrilling four-hour quarterfinal on the ATP 250 clay.

Nadal struggled to maintain his best level for long periods of the match, but held on superbly after letting a 5-2 lead slip in the deciding set to reach his first tour-level semi-final since Wimbledon 2022.

“I lost concentration for a few moments, but I managed to physically resist until the end,” Nadal, who raised his arms in the air in joy on match point, said in his on-court interview.

“This is very important for me. We’ll see how I am tomorrow, but today I’m alive and in the semifinals, so it’s very important.”

Nadal and Navone played three back-to-back sets, each lasting more than an hour, in their first Lexus ATP Head2Head match. In the first, Nadal recovered from a two-break deficit at 1-4 to force a tiebreaker, which Navone rallied to take in style.

In the second set it was Navone’s turn to recover from a two-break deficit from 0-3, but he was unable to prevent Nadal from winning his third, decisive break of the set in the eleventh game.

World No. 36 Navone appeared to have regained control early in the third set, when he broke Nadal in the second game to take a 2-0 lead.

Then came Nadal’s attack, playing five consecutive games, before Navone recovered from a double break to level at 5-5.

Finally, after getting another break on Navone’s serve in the 11th game of the decider, Nadal held firm to claim his tenth tour-level victory of 2024.

“There were a lot of changing dynamics in every single set,” Nadal said after winning the second-longest three-set match of his career.

“For moments, he was in control. For moments, I was in control. But in the end, nobody was in control! That’s true, and I had a good chance in the second set with 3-0. Then I was very close to losing the match in the second set.

“In the third [I was ahead] again with 5-2, but he’s a great fighter and he played a great match. I wish him all the best for the rest of the season.”

According to Infosys ATP Stats, Nadal converted 10 of the 21 break points he earned against Navone.

This week he competes in his first tour-level event since a first-round loss to Alexander Zverev at Roland Garros in May, and he is now on an eight-match winning streak in Bastad, where he won the title in his previous appearance in 2005.

The Spaniard was supported throughout his first three rounds in Sweden by numerous members of his team and family, including his wife Maria, son Rafael and sister.

Duje Ajdukovic awaits Nadal in the semifinals after the Croatian qualifier defeated Thiago Monteiro 6-2, 4-6, 6-4.

Regardless of how the semifinals go for Nadal, the way he physically approached a tough match against Navone will be a huge boost for the 38-year-old, who also has his sights set on the next Olympics in Paris in 2024.

The tennis event will be held at Roland Garros, where he is a record 14-time champion, from July 27 to August 4.

In the first half of the Bastad draw, seventh seed Nuno Borges will face Thiago Agustin Tirante in the last four. It will be the first ATP Tour semifinal appearance for both players.

World No. 121 Tirante, who defeated top seed Andrey Rublev in the second round, overcame Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3, 2-6, 7-5. Borges completed his quarterfinal run in Bastad under the lights on Friday, defeating Timofey Skatov 6-4, 6-3. [atptour.com]

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