Atp Finals, nightmarish debut for Rafa Nadal

7-6 6-1 was the score in favor of Fritz, who ruled the Spaniard in one hour and forty minutes

Rafa Nadal’s adventure at the Nitto Atp Finals in Turin certainly did not begin in the best of ways. The Iberian left-hander, after struggling in the first set, fell apart in the second partial at the hands of a surgical Taylor Fritz, who did not concede a single break ball to the Spaniard in the entire match.

In the first set the serves dominated, especially that of the American. Nadal with a few too many struggles – in the third game with a recovery from 30-40, and in the seventh with a comeback from 15-40 – managed to take refuge in the tie-break. Here the greater regularity of Fritz comes out, who makes fewer mistakes and cashes the pirmo set.

In the second partial there is basically no history: the American flies in an instant on 4-1, then snatching again, for the second time in the set, the service from Nadal. The inevitable close of the match is now a done deal for the world number 9, who thus joins Casper Ruud, already a winner in the afternoon against Felix Auger-Aliassime, at the top of the Green Group of the Finals.

Rafael Nadal, nicknamed Rafa, with his victory at the Australian Open 2022 became the first of the Big Three to surpass 20 Slams. The Spanish tennis player is known for his deadly left-handed top-spin and extraordinary mental strength. These qualities have led him to be considered the best tennis player ever on clay where he boasts the beauty of 14 Roland Garros titles.