• Chronicle: Nothing ends with a Delbonis fighter and waits for Carreño in the third round
  • Nadal. The tender kiss to a ball boy: "He has been one of my worst scares on a track"

The balls «I feel them very heavy. When we play with new balls, it is true that they are fast, but after six or seven strokes they become very heavy and I can not hurt the opponent. The track may also be somewhat slower than usual and that influences the ball ».

The night. "It was my first night game and the conditions are different."

Fatigue. «I arrived a little tired. This beginning has been long, a little different from what we are used to, with the ATP Cup. I started without looking for great things. Do not make mistakes, play simple ».

Rafael Nadal is in the third round of the Australian Open, where he will face Pablo Carreño on Saturday, which he has won in his four previous crossings, leaving only one set on the road. Nadal beat Federico Delbonis on Thursday by 6-3, 7-6 (4) and 6-1, but, as happened in the debut against Hugo Dellien, who also beat three straight sets, he didn't find his best tone . After defeating the Bolivian, he already referred to the uniqueness of the balls. Yesterday, in the quotation marks that opens this article, he did it again.

Dunlop relieved Wilson in 2019, with a five-year contract with the Australian Open. Already then, when a new Japanese model of this brand was introduced, there was controversy regarding the balls. “Without a doubt, they have a different touch in relation to those we have played in the last two years,” said Federer. "It's hard for out-spin players [those who play flatter, like the Swiss]. I think it is important to have clues fast enough for the conditions of the night session. If they stay slow, the ball does not move ».

«Yes, the ball is a little slower, right? It doesn't have the tall boats that used to be here. But the ball is what it is. It is fair and quality. I can't complain, ”Nadal said then.

Little profitability to the rest

The left-hander could only transform three of the 20 break possibilities he created against Delbonis, one of 18 in the first two sets. It was his first game on the Australian night, as noted in the statements at the foot of the track that are collected in the second of the quotes. There it converges with Federer, who has already pointed out in the current edition of the tournament that at times he seems to be playing on clay. It is known that the style of both has little in common: the Swiss likes to impact flat, while Nadal has made a career thanks to his exceptional handling of lifted, top spin blows.

Last year, Nadal stood in the final against Novak Djokovic without competing since the 2018 US Open semifinals, where he retired for a new knee injury when he lost to Juan Martín del Potro. He lost in three sets against the Serbian, but reached the final encounter with an impeccable performance. On this occasion, as he recalled in detail after beating Dellien (part of his statements are collected in the third of the quotes) comes from winning the Davis Cup, last November, in the Magic Box, and has opened the course with eight games in nine days in the newly released ATP Cup.

Nadal, champion of the tournament in 2009 and four times finalist, admits that he must make a qualitative leap. «I think I will improve, that is also true. I'm doing things better, in training I feel good too. In the games it's like I'm not being able to let go of what I need, especially at the beginning.

Carreño, 30th, will be the most complicated adversary in what is going on in the competition, but, of course, if he keeps going, difficulties will be added. He would enter the second week with the winner of the match between Kyrgios and Khachanov. The Australian has never been a plate of taste for him.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

Know more

  • Rafael Nadal
  • Australian Open
  • tennis
  • Novak Djokovic

TennisNadal, Federer and Serena will play an exhibition in favor of fire victims in Australia

Australian Open 2020 Melbourne, the first station where Nadal can match the 20 'big' of Federer

TenisRafa Nadal, a safe value for Santander Bank