Rafael Nadal's journey at the 2024 Italian Open is over as Hubert Hurkacz easily beat the Spaniard in two sets.
The Polish player was never known for his clay qualities, because he's a player who mostly enjoys the faster conditions where he can utilize his serve in the best possible way.
The serve is hugely important on clay as well, but he can't rely on it as much. Players who benefit from such serve actually have to go out and outplay their opponent in the long rally typical for clay tennis.
Hurkacz has been playing really well on the surface this year scoring some notable wins. He's likely not a player who will win the Roland Garros, but he can beat many opponents on the ATP Tour.
That's what happened in this match against clay legend Nadal. Both had early break points, but neither was able to break. Huracz broke not long after that, taking a 3-1 lead, and he'd break once more for the 6-1 finish.
Yes, he bested Nadal 6-1 in the opening set, and it was mostly because he played amazing tennis. He hit the ball pretty well from the line and added 6 aces for the rather quick set.
Nadal wasn't spectacularly bad, but he wasn't as good as his opponent, and the score reflected that. The second set would see Hurkacz jump out to an early lead, as well as he kept dominating on his serve.
Nadal couldn't touch him on the serve despite creating some chances here and there. It was a match in which Nadal needed to be near perfect because Hurkacz would never give him too many chances.
The 7 break chances he'd given him went unused by Nadal, which was the problem. He finished with 16 winners and 11 unforced errors, compared to Hurkacz's 22 and 8, and the final score was 6-1, 6-3 for the Polish player.
It's been a struggle in Rome for Nadal, but he will be now looking towards the French Open.
0 Comments