World No.3 Rafael Nadal clinched a tough victory against Kei Nishikori in the pre-quarters of the Barcelona Open 2021. He looked in trouble after losing the second set when Nishikori almost stunned him with his exceptional gameplay. However, the Spaniard comeback strong and won the next set to advance to the quarterfinals of the tournament. The final scoreline of the match was 6-0, 2-6, 6-2.

Rafael Nadal has now played two really close matches back-to-back on clay after a really long time. On both occasions, his match ended up going to the deciding set. However, in the post-match interview, Rafa admitted that he is satisfied with his victory and it’s an important one for him.

“It’s an important victory. I started really well, although Kei helped me a bit. I played a lot better than yesterday, which is very important for me. The energy level was better. . I am very satisfied,” said Nadal in the interview. (Translated by Google Translate)

Clearly, Rafa believes that he played much better against Kei Nishikori than in the first round against Ilya Ivashka. He highlighted that his energy level was really great throughout the match against the Japanese player.

“Need to spend time on the court”- Rafael Nadal

The World No.3 Nadal player feels that playing three sets in two consecutive matches is not necessarily a bad thing for him. On the other hand, he emphasized that it would give them much more confidence. He also took a lesson after the recent two matches and realized that he needs to spend more time on the court to improve his gameplay.

“I hadn’t played difficult matches for a long time. I hope that will give me more confidence. Having played two consecutive matches in three sets is not something negative, on the contrary: I have to need to spend time on the court,” added the 20-time Grand Slam winner.

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Rafael Nadal will next face Cameron Norrie in the quarters of the Barcelona Open 2021 tomorrow. After successfully passing the Nishikori challenge, he’ll look forward to playing good and aggressive tennis there as well. Will Rafa be able to lift his 12th title in Barcelona this year?

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