‘RAFA’ RAFAEL NADAL CONTINUES HIS WINNING WAYS IN HAMBURG, GOFFIN ADVANCES IN GSTAAD TENNIS BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: Staff on 31st July 2015

'RAFA' RAFAEL NADAL CONTINUES HIS WINNING WAYS IN HAMBURG, GOFFIN ADVANCES IN GSTAAD TENNIS BY RICKY DIMON

Rafael Nadal of Spain in action against Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay during their quarter final match at the ATP Tennis Tournament in Hamburg, Germany, 31 July 2015. EPA/DANIEL BOCKWOLDT |

Rafael Nadal’s 2015 campaign may be one to forget at this point, but he at least remains on course for a second title. Nadal put himself two wins away from triumphing at the bet-at-home Open by beating Pablo Cuevas 6-3, 6-2 during quarterfinal action on Friday.

The top-seeded Spaniard dropped serve once in the first set, but it hardly mattered because he broke Cuevas three times. Nadal’s third break of the afternoon at 5-3 wrapped up the opener in style.

Set two was even more straightforward, as the world No. 10 positively dominated on serve. He put in 78 percent of his first deliveries and won an incredible 16 of 17 service points.

“I played I think 90 percent of the match doing the right things, doing the right shots every time and waiting for my moment,” Nadal assessed. “I think I created some problems for him when he was trying to hit a winner. I think I changed well the direction (of the rallies).”

Next up is Andreas Seppi, with the head-to-head series standing at 5-1 in favor of Nadal. Seppi’s lone victory came back in 2008 on the indoor hard courts of Rotterdam. He has since lost six consecutive sets, including two in a 6-1, 6-3 beatdown last spring on the Monte-Carlo clay.

Although Nadal will have to do far more to officially emerge from a season-long slump, his week in Hamburg has been relatively encouraging up to this point. Prior to making mincemeat out of Cuevas, he defeated Fernando Verdasco and Jiri Vesely–dropping just his opening set to Verdasco in the process. Seppi beat Martin Klizan and Florian Mayer before getting a quarterfinal walkover from countryman Simone Bolelli.

An intriguing semifinal lineup at the Swiss Open, meanwhile, features David Goffin, Thomaz Bellucci, Feliciano Lopez, and Dominic Thiem.

Goffin outlasted Joao Sousa in a 6-7(7), 6-4, 7-6(1) thriller that lasted two hours and 39 minutes. Thiem also needed three sets, as he held off Pablo Carreno Busta 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. The Austrian is bidding for his second title in as many weeks, having lifted the trophy last Sunday in Umag.

David Goffin of Belgium in action against Joao Sousa of Portugal during their quarter final match at the Suisse Open tennis tournament in Gstaad, Switzerland, 31 July 2015. EPA/PETER SCHNEIDER

Briefs

* Nadal cruises past Cuevas, two wins away from passing Raonic for No. 9

* Seppi likely up three spots to No. 23, needs Hamburg title for top 20

* Fognini beats Bedene, guarantees place in top 30

* Pouille continues run into Hamburg semis, up more than 20 spots to top 70

* Goffin outlasts Sousa in Gstaad, assures staying in top 15

* Bellucci gets the best of Andujar, one victory away from top 30

* Thiem takes care of Carreno Busta, must reach final to stay 24th

* Lopez downs Giraldo, can move into top 15 with Gstaad title

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: 10sballs.com, Atp World Tour, Bet At Home Open, David Goffin, Gstaad, Hamburg, Pablo Cuevas, Rafael Nadal, Ricky Dimon, Sports, Swiss Open, Tennis News

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10sBalls_com says:

July 31, 2015 at 12:48 pm

‘RAFA’ @RafaelNadal CONTINUES HIS WINNING WAYS IN #HAMBURG, @David__Goffin ADVANCES IN #Gstaad #tennis BY @Dimonator- http://t.co/S8jHhejIhS
TennisStyle says:

July 31, 2015 at 1:05 pm

RT @10sBalls_com: ‘RAFA’ @RafaelNadal CONTINUES HIS WINNING WAYS IN #HAMBURG, @David__Goffin ADVANCES IN #Gstaad #tennis BY @Dimonator- htt…
ElenaFoundation says:

August 1, 2015 at 10:30 am

@RafaelNadal is back on form (News via @10sBalls_com) http://t.co/dsptZvMbqz