Rafael Nadal on verge of Grand Slam history after reaching Australian Open final
It's been a painful road for Rafael Nadal for over a year or so. He has been battling injuries and some heartbreaks during the tournaments over last year but Spaniard is finally back.
Former World No.1 in on the course of winning his 21st Grand Slam on Sunday, which will take him one clear from Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the race of who will finish with the highest number of Grand Slams during their career.
Nadal is one match away from becoming the greatest major champion in history after defeating Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 on Friday as he reached the final of the Australian Open that is going to take place on Sunday.
After the match, an emotional Nadal revealed that he was not sure a month back that he will ever be to play tennis again after struggling from injuries over the last few months.
“A month and a half ago I didn’t know if I would be able to play tennis,” the Spaniard said in his post-match on-court interview. “So it doesn’t matter, I just wanted to enjoy it and try my best.”
“I started the match playing great. The first two sets were two of the best for a long time. I know how good Matteo is, he’s a very solid player, very dangerous. In the third I knew at some point he was going to go for his shots. We needed to suffer, we needed to fight, we fought again and that’s the only way to be where I am today. It means a lot to me to be in the final again here,” Nadal added.
How Nadal won the semi-final!
Nadal beat Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 in the Australian Open semi-finals. The Spaniard was dominant throughout the first two sets, moving the World No.7 around the court and dictating the play throughout.
Berrettini then came back in the third set to give his fans some hope. After not having a breakpoint throughout the match, Berrettini had three in the eighth game of the third set and converted his second. He took 5-3 lead in the set and held on to his serve to take the match to the fourth set.
Nadal took control again as he broke the Italian's serve in the eighth game of the fourth set. He then held to clinch the match to reach the finals.
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Words: Abhishek Nandwani
Image: PA
