Entering Saturday’s action in Spain, Rafael Nadal had not lost a set in 10 previous semi-final appearances (20-0) at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. The World No. 1 showed no intention of letting slip that record. Nadal overcame an early break to cruise past World No. 10 David Goffin 6-4, 6-0 in one hour, 22 minutes, becoming the fourth player in the Open Era to win 400 tour-level matches on clay, joining Guillermo Vilas, Manuel Orantes and Thomas Muster. [ALSO LIKE] "Very happy," Nadal said. "I played I think my best match of the tournament so far, no doubt about that. It was a great first set in my opinion. Both of us played at a very high level." The...
Watch #NextGenATP Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas hit a drop shot for a winner against Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta in the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Watch live tennis at tennistv.com.
Stefanos Tsitsipas became the first Greek to reach an ATP World Tour final since Nicholas Kalogeropoulos in 1973 (Des Moines) on Saturday, defeating Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5, 6-4 at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. "I couldn't have enjoyed it more, I went onto the court and enjoyed every single moment," said Tsitsipas, who will have a chance to become the first player from Greece to win an ATP World Tour title. "I am very proud of myself and also I believe I made my country proud." The 19-year-old is the youngest finalist in Barcelona since 2005 (Nadal) and will be bidding to become the first unseeded champion since Gaston Gaudio in 2002 when he faces 10-time champion Rafael Nadal in...
World No. 1 Rafael Nadal shows his skills at the net with an immaculate drop volley winner against Belgian David Goffin in the semi-finals of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell. Watch live tennis at tennistv.com.
All of the numbers, including their FedEx ATP Head2Head series (2-1 Nadal), suggest Rafael Nadal will advance to his 11th Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell final on Saturday, when he faces fourth seed David Goffin in the semi-finals. Nadal has won 17 consecutive matches and 42 consecutive sets on clay, dating back to his 2017 Rome quarter-final loss to Dominic Thiem. The Spaniard also didn't drop a set against Goffin during their two clay-court FedEx ATP Head2Head matchups (2017 Monte-Carlo, 2017 Madrid). And Nadal has won 10 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell titles. [ALSO LIKE] But don't be surprised if Goffin challenges and breaks at least one of Nadal's streaks during their fourth FedEx ATP Head2Head matchup. Goffin beat Nadal the last...