Rafael Nadal reached a Tour quarter-final for the first time since the first week of the year on Thursday with his 6-4, 6-4 defeat of Briton Cam Norrie on Thursday at the ATP Bastad event.
The Spaniard who one the Swedish clay title in long-ago 2005 – his last previous appearance until this week – last played in a quarter-final in Brisbane on January 5, where he lost to Jordan Thompson and did not play for three months due an abdominal injury.
The 38-year-old who skipped Wimbledon, is sticking to the clay in hopes of more possible Olympic success when the Paris Games begin next weekend.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion advanced in one and three-quarter hours as he beat Norrie’s in a fifth consecutive meeting.
The winner characterised his victory as “great feelings.
“I’ve been a while without playing on the Tour, since Roland Garros. To have the chance to compete well against a great player like Cameron is a great feeling.
“I played in some moments good tennis, in some moments I need to play a little bit more aggressive, but that is part of the journey today.”
Nadal added: “I haven’t been competing very often, so matches and victories like today help.
“To be in rhythm the whole match and hold the pressure on the opponent the whole match, that’s something that I need to improve, because I didn’t play enough.”
Nadal won the opening set and ran off 14 points in a row at one point as he cruised into the last eight.
He was seen briefly by the physio after a tumbling slide which bloodied his leg and elbow.
The veteran improved to 9-5 this injury-marred season..
Main photo:- Rafa Nadal winning in Bastad – by ATPTour.com
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