21:23
Nadal-Fritz: 1-1
Both players work at each other with toxic crosses before Fritz gets in a really good position to magic the forehand longline winner down the baseline. This now brings the American the first breakball of the game.
21:22
Nadal-Fritz: 1-1
The 25-year-old certainly has a chance of securing two break points. Fritz struggles with himself all the more when he doesn’t accommodate a comparatively simple forehand longline in the field. 30 both.
21:21
Nadal-Fritz: 1-1
Nadal has to come over the second serve, after which Fritz switches back to the offensive. The Spaniard gradually regains the upper hand in a tight rally, but then overpowers a forehand cross just wide. 15:30 from the point of view of the second in the world rankings.
21:20
Nadal-Fritz: 1-1
Fritz got off to a good start in the first rally, but the return qualities of the Manacor bull couldn’t be matched. Rafa forces his opponent to make a mistake with a precise backhand cross, but then makes an unforced mistake himself against a hard inside-out return from Fritz. 15 both.
21:18
Nadal-Fritz: 1-1
Fritz doesn’t offer the Mallorcan anything. In the only rally in which Nadal could attack, the backhand cross he jumped in slips out. With zero, the American also checks his first service game and equalizes. 1:1
21:17
Nadal-Fritz: 1-0
Wow! Fritz has to wait a long time for Nadal, who needs his usual time until the towels are where they should be and all the rituals are done. But then the American chases an ace straight into the corner. 15:0.
21:15
Nadal-Fritz: 1-0
Nadal doesn’t let anything burn and secures the first service game to zero. In the only short rally, he then slams the forehand longline winner into the corner of the powerless Fritz. Strong start!
21:13
Nadal-Fritz: 0-0
The match is on. Nadal won the coin toss and decides to serve first. However, the Manacor bull does not place the first serve in the field. An aggressive second serve is enough to force Fritz to make a mistake. 15:0.
21:04
The players are there
The “Walk on Court” has taken place and the protagonists of the first “Night Session” of the ATP Finals 2022 are here. Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz are setting themselves up on their benches. The coin toss will follow shortly and then there will be a few minutes to warm up. The game can start shortly.
20:34
Fritz most recently with overall victory at the Japan Open
It is clear that at least the 25-year-old American Taylor Fritz will be in good form in the game. After all, the player from San Diego just won the Japan Open in Tokyo in October and secured only the fourth singles title of his career at this tournament. With this triumph, Fritz climbed to ninth place in the ATP world rankings and, due to the injury to Carlos Alcaraz, qualified as the eighth and last man for the ATP Finals for the first time in his career.
20:26
Only six more singles in the second half of the season
As is well known, Rafael Nadal had to withdraw from the tournament due to injury after winning the Wimbledon quarterfinals against Fritz. In the period that followed, the 36-year-old only played in three tournaments and only played six singles games in the second half of the season, of which he lost three games. Accordingly, one can be curious about the form in which the second in the world rankings presents itself in today’s opening game.
20:18
Recently two hard fights against Fritz
The new father Rafael Nadal bumps into Taylor Fritz for the third time in the calendar year 2022 and the first two times it was extremely hot. First of all, the American surprised the entire tennis world when he was able to assert himself in the final of the Indian Wells Masters against the Spaniard, who was still undefeated in 2022, 2-0 (6: 3 and 7: 6) and the Manacor bull the first defeat after 20 individual wins in a row. And then both athletes danced the full distance of five sets in the quarter-finals of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships, when Nadal again prevailed 3-2.
20:12
Lot luck for the bull of Manacor
Due to the injury to world number one Carlos Alcaraz, Rafael Nadal went into the final tournament in Turin as number one on the seed list. It was clear that he would avoid Stefanos Tsitsipas in the round robin. However, it was not clear whether he would face a heavyweight with Novak Djokovic and/or Daniil Medvedev in the preliminary round. However, the Spaniard avoided both lots. Instead, with Taylor Fritz, Casper Ruud and Félix Auger-Aliassime, he was faced with three fundamentally feasible opponents.
20:06
Nadal still without a title at the finals
When you think of Rafael Nadal, you think of an athlete who has achieved practically everything. The now 36-year-old Spaniard has already won 22 Grand Slam titles in singles – including two in the current year. In addition, there is the gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games and 36 other major titles at Masters tournaments. What the Manacor bull is actually missing is the overall victory at the ATP Finals. He lost the only two finals that Nadal reached at the unofficial World Cup (in 2010 and 2013).
20:00
Welcome to the ATP Finals!
Good evening and welcome from the Pala Alpitour in Turin. The first day of the ATP Finals 2022 will take place here today. After Casper Ruud won 2-0 against Félix Auger-Aliassime in the green group this afternoon, superstar Rafael Nadal and Taylor Fritz will meet in the second group game at 9:00 p.m.