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Rafael Nadal had to rally from a set down and fend off two match points to defeat Denis Shapovalov on Thursday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in an epic match that lasted nearly 3 ½ hours.
Nadal advanced to his 16th quarterfinals in Rome with a 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (3) decision over the 13th-seeded Canadian. The second-seeded Nadal was down 0-3 in the second set after having dropped the first.
” is an important victory for me be able to win matches like today,” Nadal said. “To be able to win these kinds of matches against young players gives me confidence with my body. It’s true that I have to do things better for tomorrow. But the main thing today for me is recover physically.”
Nadal stared down two match points at 6-5 in the third but Shapovalov missed on a backhand and Nadal nailed a forehand winner to stay in the match en route to the win.
“These matches, you have nothing to lose. … I also think I have what it takes to beat these guys,” Shapovalov said. “It’s not a surprise to me. It’s just a tough loss. Of course, it’s not the first time Rafa’s done this. I’m not the first person to lose with match points. For sure, he does well with the pressure in those moments.”
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Top seed and world No. 1 Novak Djokovic needed just one hour, 11 minutes to oust Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-2, 6-1. He’ll face No. 5 seed Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece, who was a 7-6 (3), 6-2 winner over Italy’s Matteo Berrettini.
Tsitsipas rallied from 3-1 down in the first set tiebreak and then pounced when Berrettini struggled with his first serve in the second set.
“I had to deal with very serious business today,” Tsitsipas said. “Matteo was applying a lot of pressure with his serve, being very precise and accurate and that was the most difficult of the match today. … In the tiebreak, I found my footwork which helped me transform my game and feel more comfortable playing the rallies. I was happy.”
Sixth-seeded German Alexander Zverev was a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 winner over Japan’s Kei Nishikori in two hours, 53 minutes. Seventh-seeded Russian Andrey Rublev advanced with a 6-4, 6-4 win over 10th-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain.
Federico Delbonis of Argentina continued his run with a 7-6 (3), 6-1 win over Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada. Also, American Reilly Opelka defeated Russian Aslan Karatsev 7-6 (6), 6-4.
In the final match of the day, Spain’s Lorenzo Sonego outlasted No. 4 seed Dominic Thiem of Austria 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5) in three hours, 24 minutes.
Rafael Nadal defeats Denis Shapovalov in epic match to reach quarters in Rome - Toronto Sun
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