It has been so long since Andy Murray played any of his past competitors such as Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal. During the phenomenal the Brit enjoyed during the latter part of this year’s ATP tour, Murray got to face a lot of youngsters and used his experience to squeeze out some wins.
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Now, the 2016 Wimbledon champion faced Nadal during an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi. The duo last met each other during the semi-finals at Mutual Madrid Open in 2016.
Rafael Nadal lost to Murray in his comeback match at Mubadala World Tennis Championships
Nadal is coming off from a foot injury treatment and is treating this exhibition as a testing pad for his upcoming stint at Australia. Murray, on the other hand, comes off a bit fresh as he had a lot of match practice towards the latter end of the ATP season.
Putting his recent form to good effect, the British star maintained consistency on serve and remained aggressive on the forehand throughout the contest. Nadal, however, struggled initially but produced a couple of his trademark shots (forehand down the line with an open stance, for instance).
USA Today via Reuters
Aug 3, 2021; Washington, DC, USA; Rafael Nadal of Spain hits a forehand during a practice session at the Citi Open at Rock Creek Park Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports
Murray’s aggression ensured a defeat to Nadal as the Spaniard bowed out in straight sets, 6-3, 7-5. After the match, both iconic players got together to speak about the experience of facing each other.
“Happy to have played. I’m very happy to see Andy playing at a great level”, said the Spaniard.
"Feliz por haber jugado. Estoy muy contento de verlo a Andy jugando en un gran nivel", Rafa Nadal.
Murray also took privilege in being the opponent for Nadal’s comeback match.
“I’m happy to be here and for Rafa’s return”.
"Estoy feliz por estar acá y por la vuelta de Rafa". Andy Murray, contento tras la victoria ante Nadal. #AbuDabi
Nadal was optimistic over his performance against Andy
In the end, Nadal expressed satisfaction for his overall performance considering it’s his first match since four months.
“It was not a bad game for me considering how long I was without playing”.
"No fue un mal partido para mí teniendo en cuenta el tiempo que estuve sin jugar", Rafa Nadal tras caer ante Murray. #AbuDabi
Despite it being an exhibition match, both the champions managed to enthrall the fans with top-notch tennis. This victory might add to the confidence of Andy Murray as he is hopeful of a prolonged success on the ATP tour next year, starting with Australia.
Coming to Nadal, he will have another match tomorrow against Denis Shapovalov to come to some kind of conclusion over the status of his recovery. In all likelihood, Nadal will fly to Australia to test his luck in Melbourne.
Also read: Rafael Nadal Receives Special Honor From Fellow ATP Players for 4th Consecutive Year