Rafa Nadal Secures Victory on Clay Ahead of Paris Olympics
Rafael Nadal has secured a victory on clay, defeating Leo Borg 6-3, 6-4 in the ATP 250 tournament in Bastad, Sweden. This comes after Nadal’s defeat at Roland Garros seven weeks ago, where he decided to play the ATP 250 in Bastad as preparation for the Paris Olympics.
Nadal’s doubles debut with Casper Ruud ended in victory, and he then took to the court for his singles match against Borg, the 21-year-old son of legendary tennis player Björn Borg. Borg, ranked 467 in the ATP rankings, received an invitation to play in Bastad and faced off against one of his idols, with whom he trained days before.
Nadal took the first game to love and broke Borg’s serve to go up 3-1. He served at 25 minutes of the match and won the opening set 6-3. In the second set, Borg raised his intensity, landing a couple of good right-hand shots from the back of the court. However, Nadal stayed firm with his serve to banish any hint of a comeback and finish the match 6-4.
Nadal’s Next Opponent: Cameron Norrie
Nadal’s next opponent will be British Cameron Norrie, the fifth seed in the draw, who defeated Jozef Kovalik in the first round 7-6 and 6-4. This will be the sixth duel between the two, with Nadal having won the first four.
Nadal’s History in Bastad
Nadal has participated in Bastad on three occasions, with his last appearance being in 2005 when he won the trophy by beating Tomas Berdych in the final.
Doubles Match
Nadal’s double duel with Norrie in Bastad was overshadowed when the Briton, along with Mariano Navone, fell in their doubles clash against Theo Arribage and Roman Safiulin. The Frenchman and the Russian won 6-3 and 6-2 to face Nadal and Ruud in the second round of doubles.
Other Results
In other results, Roberto Carballes came back to win against Safiulin 5-7, 7-6 (3) and 6-3. He will face Denis Yevseyev, who came from the qualifiers and beat Alexandre Müller in the first round.
Munar Falls in Hamburg
At the ATP 500 in Hamburg, Jaume Munar said goodbye in the first round after losing to Arthur Fils 5-7, 6-3 and 6-1.