On this day: Rafael Nadal thumps Fernando Verdasco to wrap up perfect week
Ever since 2005, Rafael Nadal has been the dominant figure in men's tennis on the slowest surface, winning the majority of clay-court tournament he entered and ruling the surface as no one did before him since Anthony Wilding a century ago. One of his most dominant and also most significant titles on beloved clay came in Monte Carlo 2010, lifting his sixth consecutive trophy in the Principality and hitting the winning road again after almost a year without tasting success on the Tour! Nadal was off to a flying start in 2009, conquering the Australian Open, Indian Wells, Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome before a shocking loss at Roland Garros to Robin Soderling which took the rhythm and confidence from him, unable to win another title until spring 2010.
The Spaniard hadn't played badly in the past 11 months before Monte Carlo although he lost eight times in the semis or the title match, missing that last final touch that would have sent him over the top against the biggest rivals. That all changed at his familiar ground in Monte Carlo, conquering his 37th ATP title in the most potent style that was ever seen at Masters 1000 event, writing the record books and starting his charge towards the leading position in the rankings once again. Namely, Nadal had lost only 14 games in five matches to demolish all the opponents and get his hands on the trophy that turned the season into the right direction. He carried that form into the rest of the clay season, winning all three Masters 1000 tournaments and Roland Garros for the first time in a career in a single season and becoming world no. 1 again.
Rafa toppled all of his opponents to reach the final and Fernando Verdasco stood no chance in the title match as well, losing 6-0 6-1 on April 18 in an hour and 26 minutes in what had been one of the most one-sided Masters 1000 finals. This was their tenth meeting on the Tour and the tenth win for Nadal who never lost a set against Fernando on clay in four encounters. Rafa dropped 36% of the points in his games although it didn't cost him much, facing five break points in his final service game and keeping the pressure on the other side of the net all the time. He was all over Verdasco on the return, grabbing 64% of the points and notching six breaks from 14 opportunities to rule the scoreboard and bring the encounter home in no time at all. Fernando couldn't do much on the return besides that game when he squandered those five break points, wasting the opportunity to grab at least a few more games for a decent defeat.
Verdasco reached deuce in five different games and had a 40-30 or 30-40 in nine out of 13 games, only to lose the majority of those against a focused rival who kept his level on a high note from start to finish. Fernando managed to find some range in set number two and to stay on the level terms with Nadal when it comes to winners, failing to put his errors tally on a pause and often missing in the most critical moments to find only a single game near his name. Incapable of moving Nadal from the comfort zone or of imposing his forehand, Verdasco struggled to find the upper hand in the rallies against the rival who defended with ease, keeping the backhand side safe and controlling the pace with his deep and powerful topspin forehands that Verdasco failed to deal with. Nadal had a slim 6-5 advantage in service winners and 16-13 in the direct points from the field, with a forehand as the dominant shot on each side.
This was far from enough to create such a huge contrast on the scoreboard and that brings us to the errors department where Verdasco lost the ground to ruin his chances for a more favorable result. Nadal tamed his shots nicely, hitting from the comfort zone and defending against rival's attacks with an efficiency that forced Verdasco to make too many errors, seeking lines and those small parts of the court that Rafa had left open. The five-time defending champion stayed on nine unforced errors while Fernando counted to 25, missing equally from both wings and usually in the pivotal moments that plagued his chances.
He also had 14 forced errors and Nadal stayed on just seven, with the overall errors count standing on a 39-16 in Nadal's favor, which gave him the triumph and the title. Rafa also had a clear 19-5 advantage in the rallies with nine strokes or more, constructing the points more effectively and staying away from mistakes, building a 21-15 lead in the mid-range points with five to eight shots. The shortest rallies up to four strokes also worked in Nadal's favor, winning 23 out of 38 to emerge as a deserved champion.
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2Vb3u7s
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