The Spaniard made more than 40 unforced errors in his Wimbledon debut, but survived against Cerúndolo
Rafael Nadal warned his Wimbledon debut would not be easy. He replied that they have not played on the surface for three years, that he has not tested these courses since 2019 and that the preparation, without official matches, was not easy. It wasn’t a warning for nothing. His first Wimbledon match was hell. A fire in which 41 unforced mistakes were made, a disgrace to what the Balearics are used to, and in which he escaped against Francisco Cerúndolo on the basis of his head and mental strength (6-4, 6-3, 3-6 and 6-4) .
Nadal won, but Nadal also suffered. A lot. His debut in this tournament was never an easy one, especially in the period between 2012 and 2017 when his most resounding defeats came here like Lukas Rosol in 2012 or Steve Darcis in 2013. And that was the smell that took over the game when Nadal, after having won two sets and ‘break’ in favor in the third, began to dilute. He fell early in that third set, in the third point, and that was a good scare, but it went without consequences and seemed to remain an anecdote.
However, the slip was reinforced and changed in appearance. It was his tennis that started a gradual decline that engulfed him and turned a quiet, hot afternoon in London into a perfect nightmare for Cerúndolo. The Argentine, at the mercy of his nerves to play for the first time against one of the greats, and against a giant Nadal, was short and couldn’t find his tennis for the nearly two hours that lasted during the first two sets.
But Nadal had doubts, a break in the third unleashed a torrent of play from the Argentinian, who saw himself as opportunities against a hazy Nadal who was gripped by mistakes. The lack of memory on the grass, as he warned today, surfaced and matched a race that would have ended on the fast track at most other courses in the world.
Cerúndolo got into Nadal’s head and managed to force a fourth with his winning shots (he collected 30). Journey or setback? He aimed for the second, because the Argentinian was not satisfied with the partial, he went for the fifth. It was 3-1 and with breakballs for 4-1 and serve. He enjoyed four, Nadal saved them all and the recapture began. The 4-2 the scoreboard carried was a mirage. Everyone knew that Cerúndolo had the set in those four 4-1 balls and that, without them already, it was only a matter of time before he turned around. 4-2, 4-3, 4-4 and 4-5.
Nadal turned the fear around in fifteen minutes, ignored the uncertainty with his mental strength and was one game away from victory. Cerúndolo’s hand trembled, as he was unable to escape the trap created by not having the head of one of the greatest, certainly the most in this regard. His serve was weak, waiting for the guillotine, which reached the first match point. Nadal’s victory, fire extinguished.
His team is broken, with Marin Cilic and Matteo Berrettini out due to covid and with Sam Querrey out in the first round. His second round, this Thursday, will be against Lithuanian Ricardas Berankis, whom he already defeated at this year’s ATP 250 in Melbourne.
Source: La Verdad
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