Stefanos Tsitsipas Says Rafael Nadal Lacked Confidence

Stefanos Tsitsipas defeated Rafael Nadal 6-4, 2-6, 6-3 in one of the biggest wins of his career in the semifinals of Mutua Madrid Open 2019. The Greek defeated the Spaniard for the first time in his career. Stefanos Tsitsipas will be aiming for his third title of the year after reaching the finals of the Mutua Madrid Open 2019 against Novak Djokovic.

The 20-year-old was delighted after his victory against the five-time Madrid Open champion. He said, “It means the world. I’m really happy that I proved myself today. I played one of the best games this year. I’m really happy that I’m fighting, I’m in the zone. I’m enjoying tennis at its fullest potential. It’s really nice to be able to play this way. Today’s victory is just an unbelievable feeling.”

Earlier, Stefanos Tsitsipas lost to Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-4, 6-0 in the semifinals of the Australian Open 2019. But he took his revenge beating the 17-time grand slam champion on his favourite surface. The Greek also confirmed that Rafael Nadal was better at the Australian Open 2019.

“It felt like he was more confident with his shots at the Australian Open than now. Now I had more time to defend and attack, which might sound strange, but it felt like much better playing him on clay, ” said the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals champions.

Stefanos Tsitsipas further added, “You cannot imagine the relief. It’s unbelievable. I don’t want to say this, but it almost felt like I lost hope at some point. I lost three in a row against him. I felt in Toronto when I played him I was very close and this match kind of gave me a bit of confidence I can do it in the future, but then it was too much. I’m really happy that I overcame this and dealt with it mentally. Beating him on clay makes it even more special.”

Stefanos Tsitsipas has now defeated the ‘Big Three’ on their favourite surface, just at the age of 20. He defeated Roger Federer at the Australian Open. He also beat the World No. 1, Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters 1000 Canada in 2018. And now he also defeats the ‘King of Clay’ in Madrid. Adding to that, Tsitsipas also defeated his next-gen rivals, Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev on hard and clay court events.