Rafael Nadal turns the wheels on in Bastad | ATP Tour

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Nadal activates the machinery in Bastad

The Spaniard returned to the ATP Tour with victory on Swedish clay

July 16, 2024

It had been almost 20 years since Rafael Nadal last set foot on the clay of the Nordea Open until he did so on Monday in the doubles category, winning alongside Casper Ruud. A day later, he returned to the Swedish clay to make his solo debut against the son of an ATP Tour legend.

Nadal opened his singles participation in Bastad against Leo Borg, in a match that he ended up dominating 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 25 minutes.

“It was a huge honour for me to play against the son of one of the greatest legends in the history of our sport,” Nadal said of Borg. “I think I played quite well, he has a great future ahead of him. I wish him all the best.”

“Playing in front of this packed crowd means a lot to me. It gives me a lot of energy to keep training every day,” said Nadal, who joked about defending his title 19 years later.

The 38-year-old Spaniard began his journey in the sixth tournament of the season (Brisbane, Barcelona, ​​Madrid, Rome, Roland Garros and Bastad), to accumulate a record of 8-5 in the matches he has played.

Nadal raised his winning record on the court to 480 against the little one from the Borg family. He did so after a performance on the Center Court in which he relied on great reliability with his serve to get ahead (81%), while on the return a break in the fourth game was enough to decide it in his favor.

The Manacor native opened the second set with an extra break that helped him pave the way.

Nadal will face No. 5 seed Cameron Norrie in the second round of the ATP 250 in Bastad, who on Monday booked his ticket against Slovakian Jozef Kovalik 7-6(4), 6-4.

In addition to the 22-time Grand Slam champion, his compatriot Roberto Carballés Baena also continued his run on the Swedish clay on Tuesday, coming from behind to beat Roman Safiullin.

The Granada native needed two hours and 56 minutes to turn the match around against the No. 6 seed 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-3. He will now face the Kazakh qualifier Denis Yevseyev.

Argentine Thiago Agustín Tirante won his debut against Portuguese qualifier Jaime Faria 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 and will be the rival of reigning champion Andrey Rublev.

Finally, Federico Coria and Camilo Ugo Carabelli were unable to advance to the second round, after losing to Thiago Monteiro and Henrique Rocha, respectively.

Did you know…?

The last time Rafael Nadal competed in Bastad was in 2005 and he ended up winning the title. That was his eighth of the 92 crowns he has won today.