By Richard Pagliaro | Saturday, January 8, 2022
Rafael Nadal talks state of his game as he aims for his 89th title when he takes on American qualifier Maxime Cressy in the Melbourne final.
Photo credit: Getty
A cranky foot forced Rafael Nadal to pull the plug on his 2021 season.
The top-seeded Spaniard is making major strides in his Melbourne return.
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Exuding energy and competing with intensity, Nadal broke in the final game of both sets fighting off Finnish baseliner Emil Ruusuvuori 6-4, 7-5 to power into the Melbourne Summer Set final in one hour and 56 minutes.
Playing just his second Tour-level match since he lost to Lloyd Harris in Washington, DC last August, Nadal continues to shake off the rust and fire timely forehand strikes.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion cracked 28 winners and saved five of six break points for the second win of his comeback.
"He's difficult to know because as you can imagine after a long time outside of the competition and only having one match on my side, on the match always you need to get back to the routines, to the comfortable shots that you do automatically when you are playing very often, but for me now that's not the case," Nadal said. "I tried to do my thing, staying positive all the time, trying to find solutions.
"I think I made mistakes. I played some good points. But I need to be more consistent. That's obvious."
Still, Nadal served 69 percent and despite failing to serve out the match at 5-3, he used the serve to open the court for his ferocious forehand at crunch time.
"But my serve was working well tonight, so that helps a lot, under these circumstances, and then I played a good game to close the match," Nadal said. "That's the main thing. Victory helps a lot on this moment, of course, and that's what I did tonight. Win the match and play tomorrow again. Going to be another chance to do it better."
Afterward, Nadal said he's pleased with his progress two matches into his comeback, but knows there's a lot of work and refinement to be done ahead of the Australian Open on January 17th.
"To be back in a final of the tour is great," Nadal said. "Of course I need to do a lot of things better on court, but the only thing that I am not missing is that positive attitude; don't get frustrated when things are not going the way I wanted.
"It's normal that I'm having mistakes; it's normal that sometimes I am a little bit slower than usual. Last game was good for me. I think I did a lot of things better in the last game to have that break. But it's a process, and I always believed in the process during all my tennis career, and victories helps, and more hours on court, of course, helps a lot.
"Happy for that. Tomorrow another chance."
World No. 95 Ruusuvuori called the tense semifinal experience against the king of clay a career highlight and a "very, very cool experience."
"Well, it was, first of all, one of the best experiences on court for me," Ruusuvuori said. "I mean, on one of the biggest courts against one of the best players ever. For sure there were some nerves before the match, and it looked like he had some, too. The first few games weren't the best.
"But it was a good match overall. I thought for a while I did good things, some things for sure. It's improving; that's also a good thing. But the main thing is it was a very, very cool experience."
The sixth-ranked Spaniard plays for his 89th career title on Sunday when he takes on American qualifier Maxime Cressy in the Melbourne final.
Earier, 6'6" serve-and-volleyer Cressy thumped 17 aces and won 31 of 54 trips to net topping former Australian Open semifinalist Grigor Dimitrov 7-5, 7-6(9) to reach his first Tour-level final.
In a pre-US Open interview, former UCLA standout Cressy called Pete Sampras and the Big 3 of Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer his tennis inspirations.
Nadal knows he must find the proper passing lines against Cressy's relentless net-rushing in the final.
"Yeah, he's serving huge, playing very, very aggressive, and in fast conditions he's very, very dangerous, so well done for him for being in the final after coming from the quallies is great," Nadal said. "I hope tomorrow I will be able to play at a high level and create my chances."
The 2009 Australian Open champion is playing for his first title since he outdueled world No. 1 Novak Djokovic to win Rome last May and his first championship on Australian soil since he edged rival Roger Federer in a pulsating five-set final in Melbourne Park 13 years ago.
The 36-year-old Nadal feels recharged after a painful stretch of problems, including the chronic foot injury that prompted him to close the curtain on his 2021 season and a bout with COVID-19 he endured after returning home to Spain from Abu Dhabi where he took exhibition losses to former No. 1 Andy Murray and Canadian Denis Shapovalov.
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Coach Carlos Moya, who also contracted Coronavirus upon his return from the UAE, said the past six months have been the toughest time for Nadal during his tenure as coach as injury uncertainty can cause doubt.
"Having been a player gives you an idea of how the head works: it’s one thing to be 20 and another to be 35, where problems can seem bigger than they really are," Moya told the ATP website. "At 20, you know there’ll be a solution, at 35... you’re not so sure."
Though Nadal has heard concerns about the toll his punishing and powerful style of play can take since his teenage years, his coach says the two-time Olympic gold medal's champion's desire and determination remain undiminished.
"We weren’t sure how he’d respond. There were some pretty tough moments, but his willpower is extraordinary," Moya told the ATP. "We’re here, happy to see him play in Melbourne. He is more than ready enough for things to go well."