The Balearic reaches the semifinals of Roland Garros after a huge battle with the Serbian
Nadal won 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 and 7-6 (4) and will play against Zverev, executioner of Carreño
The Spanish Rafael Nadal assured to be “excited” by his victory in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros against Serbian Novak Djokovic and considered that he dominated more minutes of the match. “If we look at the four hours of the match, I think that for more minutes I have been more dominant than him. A second set that should not have gone with a double ‘break’ escaped me, but that is what playing against Novak has to do”, he said after beating the Serbian 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 and 7-6(4). “I have played my best game in the last four months, but due to lack of habit of playing at this level I lost that second set. Playing well, maintaining mental and physical intensity is a habit, and these three and a half months I have not been able to train or compete. That’s why victory is more valuable. In the third set I had a good level and in the fourth I didn’t lose hope”, he assured.
Nadal kept the question about his physical condition, pointed out that for this Roland Garros he will do well but promised to communicate how he is at the bottom when the tournament ends, something that can mark the future of his career. Therefore, he said he, He left the door open for this to be his last Roland Garros. “Here we are going to leave everything. I don’t know what can happen after here, but I will be able to compete and that is what I am doing. This is not the time to give many explanations. When the tournament is over I will explain it,” he said.
For all this, he considered the victory achieved against Djokovic “very special” and attributed his rise in level to facing him on the track where he has achieved the greatest successes of his career. “This track is special to me, it has something unique and on the day that I needed it the most I managed to reach a level that apparently I didn’t have recently,” he said.
He was also moved by the support of the publicwhich he thanked and explained why he “appreciates history”: “You know that for me it is the most important tournament of my career and that in all these years I have behaved appropriately in every way, at the fighting level and I have had few complaints. They appreciate the effort I’ve spent all these years to leave everything here. It means a lot to me, it’s very exciting.”
Djokovic: Nadal “showed why he is a great champion”
Djokovic acknowledged that Nadal “showed why he is a great champion” as he “stayed strong mentally” to finish the match on a high level to achieve a victory “which he definitely deserved”. “I had my chances in the fourth (set). I served to win it, I had a couple of set points,” he lamented at the post-match press conference, which went into the early hours of Wednesday.
‘Nole’ stressed that with “one or two strokes he could have reached the fifth set. Anyone could have won there”, but Nadal “showed why he is a great champion. He stayed strong mentally and finished the way he did” , he acknowledged. The Spaniard came back from 2-5 in the fourth set to prevail and win the duel. Nadal “played better in the important moments,” the Serbian summed up. “I gave my best. I know I could have played better. I’m proud to have fought until the last blow,” he added, before admitting that he lost “to a better player. I had my chances and I didn’t take them. That’s all “.
Djokovic assured that he was not surprised to see Nadal’s physical level, that in the round of 16 he had to play five sets and came to this tournament little shot due to different physical problems. Nadal”he is capable of, a few days after being injured and barely able to walk, return to one hundred percent physically. She’s done it many times in his career, so I’m not surprised.”
The Serbian also had criticism of night games of this edition of the lathe, which has also come from other tennis players, such as Nadal. Today’s meeting ended after one in the morning. “I think (night games) start too late. But television decides,” he stressed.