Nadal seals Stuttgart grass crown
Print Edition
Rafael Nadal defeated Viktor Troicki of Serbia 7-6 (3), 6-3 yesterday to win the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart for the third time in the Spaniard’s first title on grass since Wimbledon in 2010.
The top seed, who had no aces in his semifinal win over Frenchman Gael Monfils, ended the first set tiebreaker with an ace, his ninth. Nadal saved the only break point he faced.
Playing with evident confidence against the eighth-seeded Troicki, Nadal converted his first opportunity to go 3-1 up in the second set and he served out the win in 1 hour, 27 minutes.
The 14-time grand slam winner who is ranked 10th maintained his unbeaten record against Troicki.
The Spaniard previously won the tournament in 2005 and 2007 when it was still on clay. It made the switch to grass this year.
Nadal’s 66th career title marked his second in 2015 after claiming a trophy on South American clay last February. The Spaniard now owns two grass titles at Wimbledon plus 2008 Queen’s Club, London, and now Stuttgart.
Nadal’s victory boosted him to 33-10 this season as he prepares for what he hopes is a better second half of 2015. He is now 17-2 in Stuttgart, where he last competed eight years ago.
“I’m not bothered by the expectations of others,” said the 29-year-old. “I’m only motivated by my own goals, There is no pressure on me. It’s fantastic to win here on grass after winning on clay. Victor is a tough opponent.
“But I’ve been gaining confidence over the past month and a half after a very poor first three and a half months of this season.”
In Rosmalen, Netherlands, Frenchman Nicolas Mahut came through the qualifying rounds to win the Dutch grasscourt event yesterday, beating Belgian David Goffin 7-6 (1), 6-1.
It was the 33-year-old’s second win at the Den Bosch Open after a previous success in 2013.
In the women’s tournament, Italian fifth seed Camila Giorgi claimed victory when she beat fourth-seeded Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic 7-5, 6-3.
It was a first-ever title for the 23-year-old Giorgi, the world No. 35 who had previously lost three finals.
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