Bookmark this page to:        
Current rating: 0 (0 ratings)
Rafael Nadal Withstands Wawrinka Test
By Sean Rudolph
© Mark Peterson/Corleve
(August 11, 2010) Struggling between the lines for much of the first set, a rusty Rafael Nadal was stronger between the ears when it mattered most. Shrugging off 27 unforced errors and fighting off five set points in a sometimes sloppy, but highly dramatic opening set, Nadal subdued Stanislas Wawrinka, 7-6(12), 6-3, to advance to the Rogers Cup round of 16 at the Rexall Centre in Toronto.
It was Nadal's first match since he swept Tomas Berdych, 6-3, 7-5, 6-4, in the Wimbledon final to regain his Wimbledon crown and capture his eighth career Grand Slam championship.
Nadal, the only seed still standing in the top quarter of the draw, should enjoy a relatively stress-free path to the semifinals. He plays South African qualifier Kevin Anderson for a place in the quarterfinals. Anderson upset Los Angeles champion Sam Querrey, 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-4. The winner of the Nadal-Anderson match will meet either Philipp Kohlschreiber or qualifier Yen-Hsun Lu in the quarterfinals.
The World No. 1 has had a five-week break since his somersault celebration across the Centre Court lawn. Nadal has spent time resting his creaky knees and visiting South Africa to watch Spain claim its first World Cup.
Returning to work tonight, it took him most of the opening set to shake off the rust of inactivity. Frequently misfiring on his favored forehand, Nadal could not consistently find the range from the baseline and relied on his quick court coverage, competitive instincts and Wawrinka's inability to capitalize on a multitude of opportunities to snatch the 92-minute first set.
Nadal raised his record to 6-0 against the 24th-ranked Swiss, winning all 13 sets they've played.
In their last hard-court match, Wawrinka pushed Nadal to two tie break sets, losing both, in the 2009 Sony Ericsson Open round of 16 in Miami.
Timing the ball well in the opening set and often driving through his shots, Wawrinka earned set point in the 10th game on Nadal's serve and four more set points in the breaker, but Nadal played some of his most ambitious tennis on those points.
Serving at 4-5, 30-all a tight Nadal tapped a forehand into a net. It was his 19th unforced error of the set, including the 11th on the forehand side, and it gave Wawrinka his first set point. A whipping topspin forehand from Nadal nudged the sideline to coax the error for deuce. Wawrinka sprayed a forehand return wide as Nadal held for 5-all.
Recent lack of match play was evident in the tie breaker when Nadal knifed a short volley and appeared to be in command of the point only to see Wawrinka scrape back a reply. Nadal did not do enough with a second volley that sat in the center of the court for a Wawrinka pass for 3-all.
When Nadal missed forehand wide, his 25th unforced error, Wawrinka had a second set point, but capped a long exchange loooping a forehand deep. Nadal saved a third set point to seal the breaker at 7 then broke down the Swiss' defenses to earn his first set point, which was quickly erased.
Unable to control a kick second serve that caught the service line, Nadal looped a forehand return wide to hand Wawrinka a fourth set point. On the 11th shot of the next rally, Nadal's topspin caught up to Wawrinka, who spun a backhand long for 9-all.
The best rally of the match, a 30-shot slugfest, ended on a Wawrinka error as Nadal gained a second set point at 10-9. The 25-year-old Swiss slipped as he approached net and Nadal netted a pass for 10-all.
Two points later, Wawrinka was trying to convert his fifth set point and Nadal responded with one of his boldest shots of the set. Cornering Wawrinka with a slice serve, Nadal smacked a daring inside out forehand winner for 11-11.
The top-seeded Spaniard covers the court quicker than Wawrinka and used that edge in speed to gain his fourth set point. Nadal knocked a sharp-angled backhand crosscourt then hooked a forehand winner that a running Wawrinka could not catch up to as he came to a stop resting against the scoreboard.
The numbers would favor Nadal, who hooked a running forehand and leaped in the air when Wawrinka's shot found the net, ending the opening set in 92 minutes and extinguishing Wawrinka's hopes of an upset in the process.
No data found
|