BASTAD/WASHINGTON, July 20, 2024 (by Michael Dickens)
Nearly two decades after he won his first Nordea Open title in 2005, Rafael Nadal has been making the most of his farewell-tour week in Bastad. The picturesque, Swedish resort town has welcomed the 22-time major champion with open arms and showered him with much love. The 38-year-old Spaniard has returned the favor by reaching his first final in more than two years.
On Saturday afternoon, Nadal rallied from a set and a break deficit to defeat 130th-ranked Croatian qualifier Duje Ajdukovic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, in two hours and 12 minutes – much to the delight of the fans who filled Bastad Tenisstadion. The wild card Nadal’s come-from-behind victory – just his 11th win of the season – lifted him into his first tour-level title match since he won his 14th Roland-Garros crown in 2022.
(Comeback) King of clay 👑
19 years on, @RafaelNadal returns to the Bastad final 4-6 6-3 6-4 🆚 Ajdukovic@NordeaOpen | #NordeaOpen pic.twitter.com/UwecYzC7Oe
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 20, 2024
After enduring a three-hour, 59-minute quarterfinal marathon win over Mariano Navone on Friday, the 261st-ranked Nadal was put to a test by Ajdukovic from the outset of their semifinal tussle. After dropping the opening set, in which he trailed 3-0, Nadal recovered nicely in the second and third sets and went on to break his opponent’s serve five times en route to the semifinal victory.
“I think it was a very tough match. My opponent had one of the best backhands that I played against,” Nadal said during his on-court interview. “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’s great news and I’m very happy with that.”
Simply iconic ✨@RafaelNadal serving up what the fans want to see@NordeaOpen | #NordeaOpen pic.twitter.com/L5yUi5boO7
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 20, 2024
In the final set, after Nadal squandered a 3-0 lead and allowed Ajdukovic to level matters at 3-all, the former World No. 1 recovered and went on to capture the victory. He secured match point by winning a spirited 16-shot tally that ended with a netted return by the 23-year-old Croatian.
“I found a way at the end to win and with the right mentality,” Nadal said in his post-match news conference. “It still was a challenging day. …
“Always it is a great feeling to be back in a final,” Nadal added. “I have won four matches in a row, something I was not 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.
“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’s see if I am able to play a little bit better tomorrow.”
What it means 🫶@RafaelNadal on being back in his first final since May 2022 pic.twitter.com/edxlnhdl12
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) July 20, 2024
In Sunday’s final, Nadal will face No. 51 Nuno Borges of Portugal, who became just the fourth Portuguese player to reach an ATP Final, after defeating No. 121 Thiago Agustin Tirante of Argentina, 6-3, 6-4.
The 27-year-old Borges, who was playing in his first ATP Tour semifinal, hit 16 winners, converted three of six break points and outpointed Tirante 64-42 during the 69-minute semifinal. The victory leveled his 2024 win-loss record at 17-17. He joins João Sousa, Pedro Sousa and Fred Gil as the only Portuguese players to advance to an ATP Tour final.
“Sharing with the court with him is a dream come true” 🙃🔊@nunoborges97 ahead of meeting @RafaelNadal in the Bastad final@NordeaOpen | #NordeaOpen pic.twitter.com/EbBUDn6yVi
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 20, 2024
During his on-court interview, Borges said he looks forward to playing Nadal in the final. “Honestly, just sharing the court with him – especially in a final where he has won the tournament before – is just a dream come true. I’m just going to try to enjoy it the most I can while still competing and trying to play my best. Let’s see how it goes.”
Around the Nordea Open
Soon after his semifinal victory, Nadal and Casper Ruud of Norway pulled out of their doubles semifinal, which gave a walkover win to third-seeded Brazilians Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos. On Sunday, Luz and Matos will play unseeded Manuel Guinard and Gregoire Jacq of France for the title.
ℹ️ The Ruudal saga has reached its end as the popular couple has chosen to withdraw from the competition.
We’re not as sad that it’s over as we are glad that it happened💙#nordeaopen #båstad #tennis #atp
📸 @liljasinstagram pic.twitter.com/UxOam7QM5u
— Nordea Open (@NordeaOpen) July 20, 2024
By the numbers
Rafael Nadal has compiled a nine-match winning streak in Bastad going back to his 2005 title run. This week, he’s strung together wins over wild card Leo Borg, No. 5 seed Cameron Norrie, No. 4 seed Mariano Navone and qualifier Ajdukovic. Saturday’s victory was the 1,079th of Nadal’s career.
“Quotable …”
“It was very emotional. Today was just sticking to the plan. I knew [Thiago] wasn’t feeling his best. He was probably very tired from yesterday and before playing big matches. I thought I had an advantage there. It’s not easy to play knowing maybe he wasn’t 100 percent. But still, it was a great crowd today, great atmosphere, I enjoyed it. … I came up my best tennis at the end. It made me very proud.”
— Nuno Borges of Portugal, during his on-court interview, following his semifinal victory.
