By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Thursday, July 18, 2024
Rafael Nadal tore through five straight games defeating Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 to reach his second quarterfinal of the season in Bastad.
Photo credit: Adam Ihse/TT Agency/Getty
Talk is cheap.
Listening is a valuable resource when you’re as experienced as Rafael Nadal.
Playing his 530th career clay match today, Nadal responded to a 1-4 second-set deficit with some self-coaching.
Relying on positive reinforcement and his twisting topspin forehand, Nadal rolled through five games in a row sweeping Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4 to reach his second quarterfinal of the season on the red clay of Bastad.
Nadal served 72 percent, saved three of four break points and fired his fifth ace out wide to complete a one hour, 43-minute victory in style.
“Great feelings. I’ve been a while without playing on the tour since Roland Garros and had the chance to compete well against a great player like Cameron is a great feeling,” Nadal said. “I think I played, for moments, good tennis, for moments, I need to play a little bit more aggressive.
“It’s part of the journey today. I haven’t been competing very often so that’s matches, victories, like today, help to be on rhythm the whole match. And hold the pressure and opponent during the whole match that’s something I need to improve. That’s something I need today because I didn’t play enough.”
Facing that 1-4 deficit, Nadal did not press the panic button.
Instead, he imposed his forehand in flying through 16 of the last 18 points in one of his most complete matches of the season.
“Well I feel that in some ways, in the beginning of the match he was in some ways better than me,” Nadal said. “Because he was winning his serves quite easy and my serves I was suffering a little bit more. But I was the player who made the break.
“And then in the second set, in the beginning of the second set, I feel like I was playing better than him, having some break points and having the chance that I was more in control. But I played a bad game and he played a good game and so he break me.
“So I say to myself ‘Okay, it’s 4-1, but it could be 4-1 for me too.’ So I just need to keep doing the things I am doing. Probably play a little bit more aggressive with my backhand that I think at the end of the match worked a little bit better. That makes the difference. With the forehand I am quite happy and with the serve too.”
The 38-year-old Spaniard improves to 9-5 on the season with his first quarterfinal since Brisbane last January.
At the outset, Norrie was holding serve more effectively.
In this battle of left-handers, Norrie stamped love holds in two of his first three service games, while Nadal had to come back from 15-30 down a couple of times to hold.
Can’t fault Norrie for attacking his shots—you’re not beating the king of clay playing it safe—but after saving two break points, the Briton’s ambition exceeded his accuracy. Norrie hooked a crosscourt forehand wide then narrowly missed a forehand down the line ceding the break and a 4-3 lead to Nadal after 33 minutes.
Empowered by the break, Nadal was accelerating through his forehand with more ferocity.
Dancing around his backhand, Nadal zapped a diagonal forehand winner to close his first love hold and consolidate for 5-3 after 37 minutes of play.
Serving for the set, Nadal faced complications and a couple of break points. He had answers.
The two-time Olympic gold-medal champion spun a wide serve to erase the first break point and plastered a forehand right off the baseline to deny the second break point.
Pumping an ace wide brought Nadal a second set point and he sealed the 49-minute opening set with another stinging wide serve.
Earning break point in the first game of the second set, Nadal raced right in a sideline-to-sideline sprint, but caught his left toe and tumbled to the court. Nadal climbed up off the court and continued play. Norrie saved the break point and navigated the tense hold for 1-0.
On the ensuing changeover, Nadal took treatment to clean up some blood and cuts on his left elbow and hand from that fall.
Reading the wide serve, Norrie spun a crosscourt return drawing an errant forehand from Nadal to break for 3-1.
Three games later, Nadal threatened gaining triple break point on the Briton’s serve. Norrie tried to press forward, but Nadal whipped a clean pass breaking back at love for 3-4.
The 14-time Roland Garros champion rolled through 13 consecutive points as he evened the second set after eight games.
By then, the former world No. 1 was flying high. Nadal burst out to a love-30 lead in the ninth game. A crackling crosscourt rally ended with Nadal jamming a forehand down the line to earn break point.
Reading a drop shot, Nadal burst out of the blocks, caught up to the ball easily and knocked a two-hander down the line breaking again for his fourth game in a row and a 5-4 lead.
Smacking an ace, Nadal closed his second consecutive win with a bang. Flashing his fifth ace wide ended it sending Nadal into the quarterfinals against fourth-seeded Mariano Navone.
“He’s a player that is playing so well this year winning a lot of matches. He’s a quarterfinalist of a historic event on the tour like Bastad so you can’t expect an easy opponent, no,” Nadal said. “So, I am just focused on keeping improving every single day, try to play a little bit better.
"I know it’s going to be a tough match but I really hope to play some good tennis and give myself some chances.”