By: Nathan M. Cuny
Spain gained a 2-0 lead on Friday the 2nd of December, the opening day of the Davis Cup finals. The two star players of the day were world No.2 Rafael Nadal, and No.5 David Ferrer of Spain. The Spanish Davis Cup team gained the lead after defeating the formidable Argentine players, No. 26 Juan Monaco, and No. 11 Juan Martin del Potro. Nadal and Ferrer accomplished their victories back to back.
Rafael Nadal competed in the Davis Cup finals opening round against Argentina’s Juan Monaco. Nadal finished the match with a 6-1, 6-1, 6-2 win. Nadal was very satisfied by his Friday victory, stating, “It was a very solid match from myself. I think I played great the first two sets, without mistakes. For me, it’s a big victory and I’m happy to score the first point for my country.”
At the eight minute mark of the first set, Monaco opened the game saving three break points and finished the game with an ace scoring the first point of the set. Nadal commanded the court from the second game on of the first set, dragging Monaco back and forth along the baseline to a 6-1 win.
Monaco didn’t gain a match point until the second game of the second set. Monaco put the demand on Nadal’s game, pushing Nadal to his 6-1 win in the second set. The second set made its finale when Monaco hit a forehand crosscourt wide giving Nadal the victory with six points on serve in forty-three minutes.
The third set of the match was very exciting as Nadal’s aggression spiked. Nadal knocked three defensive strokes back at Monaco, where he dived with a backhand volley that he hit into the net. During the fifth game of the set, Monaco fell on the floor twice as he and Nadal gave it everything they had. The final game of the third set became a show of stamina as Nadal and Monaco ran back and forth over and over, finishing the opening match with a love game.
Following the furious match, the exhausted Monaco commented, “I felt like I was playing well but, frankly, it’s Rafa Nadal. From the very first moment he was solid, and he always recovered with his positioning. With any other player, the point ends much sooner. He didn’t give me any chances.” Monaco dropped to a 5-7 in singles rubbers following his loss at Friday’s match.
Nadal’s opening round success made his 68thmatch win of the season as well as his 19th win out of 20 in singles rubbers. Perhaps the extra rehabilitation Rafa gained after his lack of triumph at the Barclays finals boosted his moral for the Davis Cup finals. Although Rafa did not win the biggest singles finals title of the year for himself, he has a shot at winning a finals title for his country. A fifth time honor Spain couldn’t do without him.
Topics: Davis Cup Finals, Rafael Nadal
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