World No. 2 Rafael Nadal lost in three sets to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Madrid Open semifinals this evening. The young Greek won 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 after two hours and 34 minutes of play.
Rafa has lost in the semifinals of all three claycourt tournaments he has played this season and has yet to win a title in 2019.
He was trying to reach his 50th ATP Masters 1000 final, and his ninth final in Madrid.
The defeat on the Madrid clay for Rafa comes just two weeks before he bids for 12th French Open title in Paris.
After the match, Rafa said:
It’s not been a good match. I fought and did a couple of good things mentally. I trained around 5pm and it was very hot but it was more windy, more cold. I felt the ball better yesterday. It’s not been my best night. My opponent has been better, when that happens you lose.
Tennis is about winning or losing. I’ve been able to win a lot on this surface over the years. This year it seems it’s not the way.
I don’t see myself losing that match if I play the level of Barcelona 2017 or in Australia this year. Maybe it’s not the truth, but it’s my feeling. (via George Bellshaw)
Rafael Nadal during the Mutua Madrid Open Masters match on day eight at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain. May 11, 2019. (Photo by A. Ware/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Spain’s Rafael Nadal celebrates winning a point against Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas during their ATP Madrid Open semi-final tennis match at the Caja Magica in Madrid on May 11, 2019. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP) (Photo credit should read OSCAR DEL POZO/AFP/Getty Images)
MADRID, SPAIN – MAY 11: Mutua Madrid Open Rafael Nadal, Stefanos Tsitsipas during the match between Mutua Madrid Open Masters v day 8 on May 11, 2019 in Madrid Spain (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)
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Raul during the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 (ATP Masters 1000 and WTA Premier) tenis tournament at Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain, on May 11, 2019 (Photo by Oscar Gonzalez/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images
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Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images
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Rafa there is NO One that can tell you how to play because you know it better than Anyone….you simply are not always applying it and you loose focus on the target….. Your public more than love you including myself and wish you finally win ones anyone.
Please Rafa you have to play thinking on winning and you will certainly be there,
Guadalupe
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With very sad feelings i think djoker is favorite at FO. Even i am a huge Rafa fan if i have to put my money i will put on djoker. Last year he made changes on his game: the serve, the fire in his game. This year he is far from last years. I am not optimistic this years about rafa’s winnings. Please Rafa show me that i am wrong and if he will win FO then i will put ash on my head but i realy don’t think he will. But if Rafa will not win than i want that dominic will be ths winner (or any other but djoker). King of clay with no trofey this year.. . It is very sad but we have to sustaine him even in these moments. Vamos Rafa skip Rome to be fresh at FO.
I believe it’s mental because you have the shots and huge talent. you must think positive, You are the greatest and when you want to win and are determined to win like we have seen you do over and over …you will win.
Block out all excuses and think only of your winning every point..till, the end in the winners Circle !!!
Love you ..a fan always..Nina
My options only!…Djokovic is on something and has been. There I said it. Sorry to think this way apologetically.
Marla D Lambert, I am surprised not to see other Rafa fans rebuking you for your slanderous comment about Djokovic. WHERE IS YOUR PROOF?
As far as I can tell, Djokovic is “on” meditation.
While you didn’t mention the “d” word I can only surmise you mean “doping”. Correct me if I am wrong.
As a Rafa fan I was outraged whenever I read comments in the media or on other blogs about Rafa doping. Rafa had to go as far as suing a previous French health and sports minister for the same slanderous accusation: doping. I won’t dignify her by naming her.
I think it is SHAMELESS that you come here on Rafa’s fan blog and say something like that WITHOUT an iota of proof. I am not a Djokovic fan nor do I particularly like the guy but to accuse him of doping is just so very wrong.
Signed,
DISGUSTED
Hopefully you can win FO but I’m having a little doubt. Maybe you are over thinking. Not sure what’s going on but keep at it.
Yes…I love him and support him always, but I expressed my doubts after Monte Carlo…it’s mental and I said that he will continue loosing if he doesn’t address that issue….I am really sorry that I was right tho…
Rafa said that what happened in the last 14 years was not normal. Perhaps for an ordinary player it wouldn’t have been but I believe that for him with his high tennis I.Q. exceptional talent, and extraordinary work ethic that it was normal. Yes it is mature to accept a defeat such as yesterday’s but please don’t start to think this is normal. There will be ups and downs to come but with a few little tweaks here and there I have no doubt that there will still be many trophies with his name on them in the near future. Wishing him great success in Rome.
Rafa’s play in the second set was very good, but overall too many mistakes at critical moments against a very good opponent. Rafa won 52% of points, which is often enough to win the match, and all of his stats were better than Stef’s apart from break points won/saved. As said, unfortunately the points he lost were important ones.
Let’s remember though that Madrid is Rafa’s “worst” clay tournament. The altitude and Rafa’s illness at the start of the week can’t have helped.
The margins in tennis are small and on another day Rafa could have won. To use one of his favourite words, he is still competitive. Rafa made it a stage further than he did at this tournament last year, and where are last year’s finalists? They were Thiem and Zverev, both already out. No player has won more than one big title this year; nobody has been dominant. In other words, Rafa isn’t the only one whose results haven’t met expectations.
I think it’s reasonable to suggest that Rafa’s days as an outright favourite at any event are probably over, even on clay. It’s now a question of how he reacts to that and how he chooses to deal with it (I think Fed has made that transition well btw). Maybe that means there will be less pressure on him. I’ve seen a few quotes from Rafa’s presser yesterday that seem quite encouraging. I’ll go with this:
“But there’s a lot of tennis ahead, I still have two clay court tournaments ahead of me. Let’s go week to week, see how it goes.”
My view is that Rafa should flatten his shots more and think less about his shots. We know that his serve will never get to the level where he can get out of trouble, so he should focus on placement instead of speed. I used to think that if he were to serve 15mph-20mph faster, then it would be difficult to beat him, but I don’t think that he can do that. Perhaps, he should change his grip? Also, he is relatively good at the net (he could work on it a little more) and maybe that might benefit him.
The Semi-Finals against Tsitsipas was interesting to watch. Tsitsipas played a very smart and confident match against Rafa, but it was that third set that made the difference, imho. In the third set when Rafa was serving at 2-2; 40-15, he lost concentration/confidence after Tsitsipas [correctly] called a shot out and stopped play. Then Rafa chose to hit a shot that was too airy when Tsitsipas drove to net for an easy volley. I feel that Rafa should have flattened his shot. Anyway, I don’t know if the result would have changed, but I DO believe that Rafa can still win RG. He just needs to tweak a few things.This will be his 12th FO!
Remember these matches are the best of three whereas RG is the best of five. I think this will favour Rafael. I am disappointed he has lost so many points but am confident he will make them up. What galls me is that Djokovic is doing better. Sorry but I do not like The Joker.