Nadal Beats Murray, Moves Into 10th Monte-Carlo Final
Nadal Beats Murray, Moves Into 10th Monte-Carlo Final
Spaniard to go for 68th tour-level title
Rafael Nadal is through to his 100th tour-level final after fighting from a set down to beat Andy Murray 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 in a thrilling contest on Saturday in the semi-finals of the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters.
When he faces Gael Monfils on Sunday, Nadal will challenge for his 68th tour-level crown and ninth at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, where he won eight successive titles from 2005-12.
“I think I played a great second set in terms of mentality. In the third set, I played aggressive… It was a great match,” Nadal said. “It’s a very important week for me, being in a final here again in Monte-Carlo, winning against very tough opponents.”
The Spaniard is bidding to draw level with leader Novak Djokovic on 28 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles by claiming his first trophy at this level since 2014 Madrid, where he beat Kei Nishikori in the final.
After battling wins over Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Benoit Paire, the second-seeded Murray has improved throughout the week in Monte-Carlo and showed his best tennis as he dictated against Nadal in the first set. The Dunblane native did not hold back, and his aggression paid off as he broke Nadal to lead 4-2.
Murray squandered a 30/0 lead in the following game, but saved two break points with an ace and a forehand winner to stay in front, before breaking Nadal again to claim the opener.
Nadal looked set to mount a fightback as he broke Murray in the first game of the second set. But Murray continued to pummel away from the back of the court and was rewarded as he immediately levelled at 1-1. The Spaniard did not let slip a second break advantage though. After breaking Murray for a 4-3 lead, Nadal warmed to his task and rallied from 15/40 in the following game and went on to draw level.
It was all Nadal in the decider. The Spaniard was the one controlling the baseline exchanges and stepping in, taking advantage of a slight drop in Murray’s level. The Manacor native broke Murray in the first game of the third set and raced into a 5-2 lead. Murray made a last stand in an enthralling eighth game, saving four match points before creating two break chances. But Nadal stepped up to thwart Murray and converted his fifth match point in two hours and 44 minutes.
“The match overall was a pretty good match,” Murray said. “There were a few things I would have liked to have done differently out there. The third didn’t get off to the best start. Then obviously had a few opportunities in that last game to try to make it a bit more interesting, but couldn’t quite get the break.”
Nadal improved to a 57-4 record in Monte-Carlo as he reached the final for the 10th time. From 2005, he won 46 straight matches here before losing to Djokovic in the 2013 final.
“I am what I am today. I’m in the final of Monte-Carlo. That’s great news,” Nadal said. “Rafael Nadal of 2016 will not be the same of 2009 or 2008 again. Every year is different. Every feeling is different.”
The Mallorcan is bidding to win his first ATP World Tour title since July 2015, when he captured the clay-court crown in Hamburg. He started his 2016 campaign with a runner-up showing in Doha (l. to Djokovic) and subsequently reached semi-finals in Buenos Aires (l. to Thiem), Rio de Janeiro (l. to Cuevas) and Indian Wells (l. to Djokovic).
The 28-year-old Murray was looking to reach the final at the Monte-Carlo Country Club for the first time, after losing to Nadal at the semi-final stage in 2009 and 2011. Murray made his clay-court breakthrough last season, winning his first two titles on the dirt in Munich (d. Kohlschreiber) and at the Masters 1000 in Madrid, where he beat Nadal.
“He’s one of the best, if not the best ever, on this surface,” Murray said. “At times today, he played very well. When he does, you can’t always decide the outcome. He played some good stuff today and deserved to win.”