Rafael Nadal seems to break a new record as well as his opponents’ resolve, every single time he sets foot on Court Philippe-Charite.
And on Tuesday, the 12-time champion moved one step closer to the title as a Roland-Garros centurion after he prevailed over Italian teenager Jannik Sinner 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-1.
It was also the world No.2 and defending champion 100th match on the Terre battue of Roland-Garros.
“He’s a very, very young talent with great shots. For two sets it was very tough. At the end of the first set I was very lucky. It was very difficult for me to pull him out of position,” says Nadal about Jannik Sinner.
“In the third set I improved, I was much better being much more aggressive. That’s the only way. I’m very, very happy to be back in the semi-finals of Roland-Garros again. It’s no doubt the most important place for me, the most beautiful place to play.”
“Now I have two, I will say one and a half days off to rest, practise a little bit and recover to be ready for the semi-finals.”
Watch the match highlights below
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Nadal’s record now stands at 98 wins and just two defeats, 237 hours and eight minutes on the court, just 27 sets lost, 427 of 602 break points saved.
The statistics are stupendous over Nadal’s Roland-Garros century, but essentially to trouble the Spaniard over five sets is a real predicament.
Sinner stepped up to the lines and gave it his all with relentless striking, serving for the opener at 6-5 and holding a 3-1 advantage in the second set, however, Nadals’ champion’s instinct clicked in and erased both advantages.
Nadal has now made it 79 victories (in straight sets) in the 89 times he had won the first set in Paris.
Argentine and No.12 seed Diego Schwartzman will now try his own magic to see if he can inflict a rare loss on Nadal in Paris after defeating US Open champion Dominic Thiem earlier on Tuesday. Schwartzman prevailed in a pulsating five-set, five-hour marathon to cancel hopes of a Thiem-Nadal showdown in the semis.
Hopefully, Schwartzman can outlast and outclass Nadal in the Spaniard’s 34th major semi-final, which is a rematch of their Rome quarter-final clash last month, which the Argentine won in straight sets.
“Of course, is a challenge. When you lost to somebody, is because he’s playing well. Today he played an amazing match against one of the best players of the world, without a doubt, especially on this surface,” says Nadal, who held a 9-1 record against Schwartzman.
“He’s coming with big confidence, no? Two weeks in a row… He’s in the final in Rome, he’s in the semi-finals here. He beat me there. It’s a plus of confidence for him, I know that.
“I’m going to… play aggressive, try to do something a little bit different than what I did in Rome, of course. Hope to be ready to play my best. That’s what I need. That’s what I am looking for. I going to give my best until the end.”
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