Top seed and defending champion Rafael Nadal fell down a break early, but quickly rebounded and rolled from there to top British qualifier Daniel Evans 7-6(6), 6-4 in the second round of the Coupe Rogers in rainy Montreal.
After rain delays of six and 30 minutes, our champ fought off two set points in the first-set tiebreaker before prevailing. Play again stopped for one hour 56 minutes came with Rafa leading the 53rd-ranked Evans 2-0 in the second set. The match lasted two hours one minute, excluding rain delays.
The world No. 2 is now 35-8 at the ATP Masters 1000 in Canada.
Rafa’s next opponent will be Guido Pella.
Christopher Levy @tennis_shots
Photo: Coupe Rogers
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain looks on after hitting a return against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts after losing a point against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain adjusts his water bottles during stoppage in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain on day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain reaches over the bench during stoppage in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain on day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain looks on as the rain disrupts play in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
Pascal Ratthé | Tennis Canada
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain walks off the court as the rain disrupts the play in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
Patrice Lapointe | Tennis Canada
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts after scoring a point against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates a point against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain takes to the court against Daniel Evans of Great Britain after a rain delay during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain looks on in his match against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain hits a return against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain serves against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain runs across the court against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain returns the ball as he rushes the net against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain watches the ball passes him against Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates his 7-6, 6-4 victory over Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC – AUGUST 07: Rafael Nadal of Spain celebrates his 7-6, 6-4 victory over Daniel Evans of Great Britain during day 6 of the Rogers Cup at IGA Stadium on August 7, 2019 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
Source: The Canadian Press
Rafa had a fight on his hands in opening set..nerve wrecking but thankfully he won. Evans is a good player and is one to watch for the future. Vamos Rafa
Congratulations Rafa for the win. Hope you don’t suffer too much and that you are in good conditions for your next round.
Vamos champion.
Congratulations Rafa👏 It was a close match but still I am happy you got it done in straight sets👍
Can’t wait to see you again at 6:30 pm tomorrow, I will be ready to cheer you on just like today😁 Good luck🍀 Vamos❤️
Evans played well and definetly pushed Rafa hard . The first set could have easily gone to Evans . Rafa played clutch in turning the tiebreaker into a win while Evans missed a big opportunity . Overall , its good that Rafa had to work hard for this win . Pella is also no pushover and he has looked very game ready . Rafa must get the 1st serve percentage up and play serve and volley as it works for him and keeps his opponent off balance .
Rafa will win over Pella but its no walkover by any means . Vamos !
Pella played a three setter today plus is playing doubles tonight with Schwarzman. Even if the next match is scheduled for tomorrow night you have to think he will be one heck of a tired 29 year old player. Rafa will definitely be the fresher of the two.
RR
LOL, Yes.
AND he just came from playing Los Cabos losing to Diego in the SF.
RAFA ROCKS
Of Rafa’s three wins over Pella, two were on clay and one was on hard [Indian Wells in 2017, 6-2, 6-3]. Hopefully this match will be a SS’s quick one. Rafa for the win.
RAFA ROCKS
Bravo Rafa 😀 I saw the second set on the DM site when I came in , ☔ the rain stops play, does them good to rest and plan 😄 Pella is hispanic, They both speak Spanish ☺ Vamos Fiona in Paris
Too close for comfort …that’s for sure …. It seems to take Rafa a little while to get his mojo going, so we experience first game losses, unforced errors and so on… But as the match goes on, he settles in…
A wins a win and we got one today and I’m happy about that…
Good luck tomorrow… take care of business….
VAMOS RAFA
Congratulation Rafa great win
Evans is a tricky opponent; he gets nearly every ball back, good movement, good serve. I don’t think Rafa had ever played him before and his playing style is different to many others. That, the rain delays and, I’d guess, a few first round nerves meant that Rafa had trouble finding his rhythm and getting into the match. I thought he might have gone after Evans’ backhand more.
Apparently Rafa asked to play early to try and avoid the rain, which was expected later in the afternoon, so the timing of the match was his choice. The second delay coming just as he finally had some momentum going was unfortunate.
A bit of a struggle, but still a straight sets win and Rafa gives himself another chance for tomorrow. Vamos!
Happy Rafa won but “roll” he did not. For me, that was too close for comfort for a first match. Hopefully he will be better prepared for his upcoming matches. He did say tough early matches help him.
Good luck to Rafa. Wishing him another win.
RAFA ROCKS
Seemed slow and quiet ,not quite in it at the beginning. Very understandable. I was glad for th breaks…a way to regather and become the player we know! Good!!! Onward towards the goal. A good warm up for the first hsrd court trek. Vamos!!!
BEAUTIFUL MATCH PHOTOS!!!!:)
SO GOOD!!!
Congratulations Rafa, so good to see you playing again and wish you the very best of luck tomorrow, Vamos x
ENHORANUENA!! Suerte para mañana y k k estas primeras rondas las superes bien… SIEMPRE CONTIGO!!!!
Best of luck to Rafa tomorrow vs Pella. He holds a 3-0 record against him. There’s rain in the forecast as well so hopefully they can get the match in.
Rafa i was watching your much it was difficult circumstance, with the early start and the rain delays. Congratulations vamossssssssss champ and good luck for the next much.love your fans for ever.🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️🇺🇸🎾💪😘❤️
Congratulations on the win-🍀all the best in the next round🤛💪👍👏❤️
It was difficult circumstances, with the early start and the heavy conditions and the rain delays, but he got there!
GORGEOUS VICTORY!!!!!!!!!:) VERY EXCITING FEISTY PLAY SWEETHEART!!!!!!!!!:) YOU ARE BRILLIANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:) CONGRATULATIONS DEAR RAF……PRECIOUS GOAT AND ULTIMATE CLASSY CHAMP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:) ENJOY A GREAT EVENING AND A BEAUTIFUL TOMORROW!!!!!!!:) WE LOVE YOU AND YOUR HUNKY SEXY TENNIS FORCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:) HAVE FUN CELEBRATING AND ENJOYING YOUR GORGEOUS POINT BY POINT BRILLIANCE!!!!!!!!!:):):):):):):) XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
So exciting to watch Rafa! Great serving and loved you coming to the net!! Vamos Rafa!!
Not his best match after the break since Wimbledon but Rafa found a way to win.
All the best for the next round. Vamos Rafa <3