Bastad [Sweden]: The Spanish tennis legend reached the finals of the ongoing Nordea Open on Saturday with a win over Duje Ajdukovic in a hard-fought semifinal clash, making it his first-ever title clash in over two years.
Nadal beat Ajdukovic in a two-hour, 13 minute affair by 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, as per the ATP’s official website. He reached his first tour-level championship match since the 2022 French Open final, where he beat Casper Ruud to win his 14th title in Paris.
Having beaten Mariano Navone in a four-hour marathon on Friday, Nadal needed some recovery and preparation time for his maiden ATP head-to-head clash against the Croatian. After dropping the first set and the serve in the opening game of the second set, Nadal went on a rampage, breaking Ajdukovic’s serve five times across set two and three to secure the win.
Speaking after the final, Nadal said, as quoted by ATP’s website, “I think it was a tough match. My opponent had one of the best backhands that I played against. He came here with a lot of confidence. I think I was trying to push him back. It was very, very difficult, honestly, but I found a way to survive and be through to that final after a long time without being in a final. So that is great news and I’m very happy with that.”
Nadal sealed the win despite letting go off a double-break lead in the decider set. Nadal was more consistent than his match against Navone, especially in his return, as he managed to convert all six break points he earned against Adjukovic.
Nadal said that it is a great feeling to be back playing in a final after two years of battling injuries.
“Always, it is a great feeling to be back in a final. I have won four matches in a row, something I have not been able to make happen since two years ago. A lot of things happened, but still, in this process of recovering, a lot of things I lost because I had a very important hip surgery almost one year ago,” said Nadal.
“So things were not going that easy, but I am fighting. I am fighting during the whole tournament to be where I am today, and I think matches like yesterday’s, like today’s, help to improve a lot of things on court. I am happy with that, and let us see if I am able to play a little bit better tomorrow,” he concluded.
Now having won 11 matches and lost eight this season, Nadal’s challenge in the final will be the seventh seed, Nuno Borges, who defeated Thiago Agustin Tirante 6-3, 6-4 to secure his first ATP tour championship clash.
