The Spaniard gives in at his start in the United Cup and Spain closes the day 2-0 against Great Britain
It was not the expected start to the season for Rafael Nadal, who lost in his first game of the season to Cameron Norrie 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the Balearic Islands’ first match in almost a month.
Nadal opened the United Cup for Spain, but was unable to give him the first point; Nor could Nuria Parrizas, who rallied through Katie Swan (3-6, 6-1 and 6-2) to leave the team led by Marc López 0-2 after the first day. In other words, Spain will have to win the remaining three games, which will be played on January 1, to beat the British and have a chance to reach the next round.
Friday’s clash was the first official for Nadal since the last ATP final in Turin in November, where he fell in the group stage, and his first contact with the competition since the exhibitions he played in South America earlier this month.
The rival did not invite pessimism. A Norrie who, although he is among the top 15 in the world and has been in the ‘top ten’ for weeks, had not won a single set against Nadal in their four previous encounters. Fears of a possible improvement for the Johannesburg-born tennis player disappeared after a first set in which Nadal showed himself at a high level, confirmed his only chance to break and deactivated Norrie’s. The man from Manacor scored the partial 6-3 with a great service exercise -he only lost three points with first serves-.
It seemed like an ordinary win for Nadal, who turned his first 20 games of the year into victories last season, but this time the course began to turn as Norrie felt the pulse of the match and earned five break points in the sixth game of the second set. . Nadal saved the first four, but succumbed to the fifth and the rout began to take shape.
The Briton, with a skillful forehand and an unorthodox but effective backhand, began a festival of breaking ball saving that cut Nadal’s options. He saved the five options Nadal had to return to the match, one in the second set and four in the third, and after two hours and 45 minutes knocked him over with a winning forehand.
First defeat of the year for Nadal, which greatly complicates Spain’s options to continue in this United Cup. Parrizas, who entered the court a few minutes after the Spaniard, also lost to Swan to leave the Spanish team with a 0-2 defeat in the mark.
Paula Badosa and Pablo Carreño need to beat Harriet Dart and Dan Evans respectively, in addition to Spain needing to win the mixed doubles that closes the tie, to gain access to the next round. Great Britain already defeated Australia in the first meeting of this Group D, so one more point against Spain means their qualification and the elimination of the Spaniards and Australians.
Whatever happens tomorrow, Nadal will return to court on January 2 to open Australia against Alex de Minaur, a tennis player he has beaten on all three occasions they have faced each other. This clash would pit Nadal against Nick Kyrgios, in one of the United Cup’s most anticipated matches, but the Canberra man pulled out of the tournament a few hours after it started due to injury.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
