Tag Archives: Masters

Nadal Reaches Madrid Open Men’s Final

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Rafael Nadal’s clay court season is on an upswing…

The 27-year-old Spanish tennis star, the world’s top-ranked player, defeated fellow countryman Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 6-4 on Saturday to reach the finals at the Madrid Open.

Rafael Nadal

With the win, Nadal, the defending champion, reached his first clay final since winning in Rio de Janeiro in February.

Bautista Agut, playing in his first career Masters series semifinal, couldn’t match the experience of Nadal, who continues to improve after coming to the Magic Box center having lost at consecutive clay tournaments for the first time in a decade.

Nadal took advantage of Bautista Agut’s timid start to break right away for a lead he would never surrender.

Nadal’s concentration dipped temporarily in the second set as Bautista Agut clawed to within 4-3 before Nadal overcame his 21 errors by pulling away to reach his 90th career final.

“Psychologically speaking about Monte Carlo and Barcelona, whenever I had nerves, I was not ready and I was a little bit down,” said Nadal, bidding to be the first repeat winner from his sixth final appearance.

“I am mentally more stable and more confident things will go well. This is great news going into tomorrow’s match and for the future.”

Jimenez Makes History at the Masters Golf Tournament

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Miguel Angel Jimenez has entered the annals of Masters history…

The 50-year-old Spanish professional golfer made Masters Golf Tournament history on Saturday by tying the record for the lowest score shot by a player age 50 or older.

Miguel Angel Jimenez

Jimenez, who has 20 wins on the European Tour, shot 6-under-par 66 to surge up the leaderboard and move two shots behind co-leaders Jordan Spieth and Bubba Watson in a tie for fifth place

Jimenez matched the 66 shot by Ben Hogan at the Augusta National Golf Club in 1967 and again by Fred Couples in 2010.

“I love the place,” he said. “It’s a beautiful place, a beautiful golf course, always manicured, and I feel great here. Doesn’t matter how you play, you feel good, because everything is prepared for us the way it is.

“If you are 50 doesn’t mean that you cannot play well. I’m still moving. I’m still flexible … the main thing is I’m doing what I like to do in my life and I’m enjoying it completely.”

Jimenez, who won the UBS Hong Kong Open late last year, started his round at 3 over, but birdied the third, fifth, 10th and 11th holes before a bogey at No. 12. He then added birdies at Nos. 13, 14 and 16.

Playing in his 15th Masters, Jimenez matched his lowest score at Augusta National, shot in 2010. His best finish is a tie for eighth in 2008.

Although Jimenez is scheduled to make his Champions Tour debut next week in Atlanta, he doesn’t plan to make a habit of the 50-and-older circuit — at least not this year. He has a goal of making the European Ryder Cup team.

“I know I have a chance to play the Ryder Cup,” said Jimenez, who is ranked 40th in the world and 13th on the European Tour points list — a world list is also used to determine the nine automatic qualifiers.

Jimenez has played on four European teams and was a vice captain for Jose Maria Olazabal‘s winning team in 2012 at Medinah.

Nadal Defeats Roger Federer to Reach ATP World Tour Finals

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He’s already recaptured the World No. 1 ranking… And, now Rafael Nadal is hoping to end the year with a bang.

The 27-year-old Spanish tennis star defeated Roger Federer 7-5, 6-3 in the semifinals of the ATP World Tour Finals, ending the six-time champion’s hopes of finishing a disappointing season on a high note.

Rafael Nadal

Nadal will play defending champion Novak Djokovic, the tournament’s second seed, for the title on Monday.

The world’s two highest-ranked players are unbeaten in the tournament this week and have faced each other five times this season, with Nadal winning three times.

Nadal leads Djokovic 22-16, but the Serbian won their latest match last month in Beijing after losing his top ranking to the Spaniard.

Nadal, who claimed his first win over Federer on an indoor hard court, extended his winning record over Federer to 22-10 and has now beaten the Swiss on every surface. Federer had won their four previous matches at the ATP Finals, dropping only one set.

“The most important thing for me is (that indoor) is the toughest surface for me to play,” Nadal said. “The most difficult for me was to be able to win four matches against top eight players. It’s a very good way to finish the year.”

Chasing his first title at the ATP Finals, Nadal played down the importance of the victory over his greatest rival.

“It is probably one of my best seasons,” said Nadal, who reclaimed the No. 1 spot this year after coming back from a knee injury in February. “The most satisfying thing is always (to win) the tournament more than the personal victories. So for me it is more important to be in the final in the last tournament of the year than to have the chance to win against Roger.”

Since he returned from his seven-month injury hiatus, Nadal has produced one of the most impressive comebacks in tennis history. He has won 75 matches — losing only six — and captured 10 titles, including the French Open, the US Open and five Masters events.

del Potro Defeats Rafael Nadal to Reach Shanghai Masters Final

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Juan Martin del Potro has taken down the world’s No. 1 player in China…

The 25-year-old Argentine tennis player defeated Rafael Nadal, who just returned to the top of the world rankings after an impressive run this year, 6-2, 6-4 in the Shanghai Masters semifinals on Saturday.

Juan Martin del Potro

The fifth-ranked del Potro will now attempt to win his first Masters title on Sunday against top-seeded Novak Djokovic, who defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the other semifinal 6-2, 7-5.

del Potro hadn’t beaten Nadal since the semifinals of the 2009 U.S. Open where he went on to win his only Grand Slam title.

But del Potro is playing fully fit and confident — he’s coming off a win last week at the Japan Open that returned him to the top five in the rankings for the first time in three years.

He completely overpowered Nadal with his deep, punishing groundstrokes and fended off all six break points he faced.

Nadal’s serve, on the other hand, was under threat during the entire match. After not dropping serve in 28 games this week, the Spaniard was broken twice to start the match as del Potro raced out to 4-0.

Del Potro started to make a few mistakes in the second set, giving Nadal two chances to break in the second game. But the Argentine saved both with huge serves and put the pressure right back on Nadal, breaking him for a third time in the following game.

“I played so solid all the time, hitting so hard the ball. I saw Rafa playing very far off the baseline, which is good for my game, for my serve and confidence. That’s the way to beat this guy,” del Potro said.

Nadal said he hadn’t seen del Potro play this well in years. Or anyone, for that matter.

“Very few times I played against a player with a level like today I played against,” the Spaniard said. “At the end, I played against a player who served 80 percent of first serves, who hit every ball as hard as he can, I think, and with no mistakes.”

del Potro wrapped up a spot in the ATP Finals in London with the win. He’s been working his way back into top form since a wrist injury knocked him off the tour for most of 2010 — just after he got his breakthrough win as a 20-year-old at the U.S. Open.