20 July 2024 at 15:38 Rafael Nadal ready for first ATP final in over two years Spanish tennis veteran Rafael Nadal (38) beat Croatian Duje Ajdukovic and is ready for the final of the ATP 250 tournament in Båstad. The Spaniard secured the final tickets with the numbers 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. It will be his first final since he beat Casper Ruud in the Roland Garos final on 5 June 2022. In the final in Båstad, the winner of the match between Argentinian Thiago Agustin Tirante and Nuno Borges from Portugal awaits. However, Nadal got off to a tough start in the semi-finals as he was broken twice and lost the first set 4-6. The 38-year-old fought back with a 6-3 victory in the second set, before deciding the match 6-4 in the third and decisive set. Admittedly, there are many indications that he is not in great shape. On Saturday, he was broken a total of five times, while he suffered a total of eight breaks against Argentine Mariano Navone in Friday’s quarter-final. Nadal is playing in Båstad for the first time since he won the tournament in 2005. In the quarter-finals he had to go out in a four-hour thriller against Navone. Nadal has been plagued by injuries in recent years and did not really have a good enough ranking to get a place in Båstad, but was allowed to after an invitation from the organiser. (NTB)
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