After a grueling Barcelona Open QFs match, Stefanos Tsitsipas revealed a similarity between his opponent, Facundo Diaz Acosta and Rafael Nadal! The intense match, which concluded with victor’s tearful outburst, compelled Tsitsipas to acknowledge that this was indeed a “big win” for him. At the same time, the World No. 7 revealed a “similar rhythm” to that of the ‘King of Clay’.

In Stef‘s Quarterfinal Press Conference, when asked about his dramatic celebration of falling to the ground, Tsitsipas offered a surprising explanation. He emphasized Acosta’s powerful game and lefty playing style mirroring Nadal’s, especially on clay courts. He revealed that the match against Acosta rekindled the emotions of his thrilling final against his biggest idol.

“I don’t say this often, but it was a big win. I think this player has a lot of future, especially on clay courts. On hard courts, I haven’t seen him play. But on clay, he is a very dangerous and good player. He has a similar style to Nadal,” Stefanos Tsitsipas said of his Barcelona Open QF’s opponent.

Although Nadal and Tsitsipas have faced each other nine times on-court, two of them were during the finals of the Barcelona Open in 2018 and 2021. Both times, Nadal’s exceptional skills made it hard for his opponent to find the correct rhythm, ultimately leading to Nadal’s victory on the clay. Recalling those difficult moves made by his opponent, Stefanos Tsitsipas disclosed that he had to find those strategic moves against Facundo Acosta as well. “Today I had a very difficult task. And I had to find ways and a similar rhythm that I found in the final with Rafa a few years ago,” he declared.

With a career-high ATP ranking of 53, the Argentinian’s rise in the tennis world has caught attention in the last couple of years. His French Open and US Open debuts last year made waves in the athletic world. Now that Stefanos Tsitsipas has compared him to the tennis icon, fans will surely keep an eye on the rising star’s progress. While that is still work-in-progress, Tsitsipas shared his emotions about his own performance following the match.

“I don’t like to give up,” claims Stefanos Tsitsipas after his latest victory

The fifth seed, having won nine games in a row, fell to the court in ecstasy after his victory. During the game, Stefanos Tsitsipas struggled seven times with his serve and double faults. One of them even cost him a break in the third set. However, he eventually prevailed and claimed his victory.

Referring to the intense and tight match, he said, “I don’t celebrate like that very often, especially after a quarter-final. But the match was played with such high intensity.” The 3x Monte-Carlo winner further added, “This opens doors for me. And shows me how much I fight. And how much I don’t like to give up.”

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When he plays No. 59, Dusan Lajovic, in the semifinals on Saturday, fans will hope to see him maintain that record further. However, while fans witnessed the well-deserved Stefanos Tsitsipas’ victory, their attention will also be on his opponent, Acosta from here on.