Rafael Nadal has accused Stefanos Tsitsipas of speaking ‘nonsense’ after the Greek ace tipped the 22-time Grand Slam winner to go all the best way on the Barcelona Open. Nadal gained his first sport on the match in straight units, beating Flavio Cobolli 2-6 3-6 on Tuesday.
It was a successful return to the Barcelona court docket for Spaniard Nadal, who appeared again at his finest towards Cobolli. Nadal had been out of motion for over 100 days and hadn’t featured on clay for nearly two years, however the legendary tennis star was adamant about returning to the court docket in Barcelona.
Nonetheless, regardless of his dominant show in Catalonia, Nadal has refuted claims he’s among the many favourites for the title. Talking after his win towards Cobolli, Nadal mentioned: “It is nonsense [the comments from Tsitsipas], let’s face it, he is aware of that is not the case.
“I suppose there’s lots of respect for what I’ve been on this match, however everybody is aware of that I’m now not a favorite to aspire to win a match. There’s merely a narrative behind it that weighs closely on rivals. To at the present time I’m not the favourite, perhaps in at this time’s sport sure, it’s potential.”
He continued: “I do know that tomorrow [against Alex de Minaur] I’m not a favorite, nevertheless it does not matter both. These are issues for you [the media], it’s important to write about these items, for me it’s an expertise taking part in towards a top-level participant. It will likely be a take a look at for me, we are going to see how I reply.”
It comes after Tsitsipas – who lately gained the Monte-Carlo Masters – heaped the strain on Nadal by insisting he was in actual fact amongst these most definitely to win the championship in Barcelona. Tsitsipas mentioned: “I feel Rafa is the favorite. I can have good weeks on clay, however Rafa is Rafa.
“He performs good tennis, little question about it. Additionally, now we have different gamers, like Casper Ruud, who is sweet on this floor. The competitors is nice, this isn’t an atypical match from the five hundred collection, it is without doubt one of the most troublesome within the season.”
Nadal has a fast turnaround after his win towards Cobolli, with the 37-year-old again in motion towards De Minaur on Wednesday afternoon. It will likely be a take a look at of his bodily attributes, given Nadal struggled with hip and stomach accidents heading into the Barcelona Open. But when he can stay match, the King of Clay may nonetheless pose a risk to whoever he’s matched up towards.