Following a quarterfinal walkover, Rafael Nadal will be back in action when he faces Emil Ruusuvuori in the Melbourne semis on Saturday. Grigor Dimitrov and Maxime Cressy are also aiming for a place in the title match.
(1) Rafael Nadal vs. Emil Ruusuvuori
Nadal is through to the semifinals of the Melbourne Summer Set after playing just a single match. The 35-year-old Spaniard earned a first-round bye as the top seed and also got a quarterfinal walkover from Tallon Griekspoor. In between, Nadal kicked off his 2022 campaign with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over Ricardas Berankis on Thursday. Fortunately for the world No. 6, he also got some match practice in the form of doubles with Jaume Munar on Tuesday in addition to a pair of singles contests at last month’s exhibition in Abu Dhabi.
A walkover may not be absolutely ideal, but if nothing else Nadal will at least be well-rested for Saturday’s showdown against Ruusuvuori. The 22-year-old Finn got a late alternate spot in the Melbourne main draw and has made the most of it with wins over Sebastian Baez, Jordan Thompson, and Alex Molcan. The bad news for Ruusuvuori is that he has never faced Nadal — or any other Big 3 player — so this is going to be one of the toughest tests of his career. The world No. 95 can make it relatively competitive, but Nadal in straight sets is the probable outcome.
Pick: Nadal in 2 losing 8-10 games
(3) Grigor Dimitrov vs. (Q) Maxime Cressy
Dimitrov and Cressy will also be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers on Saturday. To say that both guys have endured huge scares along the way in Melbourne would be a gross understatement. Botic Van de Zandschulp served for the match at 5-3 in the third set against Dimitrov on Friday night and led 40-15 only to see the Bulgarian storm back for a 6-7(5), 6-0, 7-5 victory. In Cressy’s all-American second-round matchup with Reilly Opelka, he trailed by a set, saved break points in four different games in the second, fought off another break point at 3-4 in the third, and saved two match points in the ensuing tiebreaker before triumphing 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9).
Fortunately for Cressy, he conserved energy by defeating Jaume Munar in impressive 7-6(3), 6-4 fashion on Friday. Dimitrov has needed three sets in each of his matches so far (also against Facundo Bagnis in round two), and if this is another close one then Cressy’s serve gives him an advantage in the pressure-packed moments.
Pick: Cressy in 3
WWW?
Vamos Rafa; and Dtrov in 3.
Rafa’s into the final! Vamos Rafa!
I think he will lose tomm though .he is surely slow .
Well i’m sure many didn’t expect him in the final……..
Apparently Cressy has said he has the game to beat Rafa.
I think he will. Rafa is slow ..watch the highlights
I don’t know anything about Cressy but that’s enough to make me dislike him. Hubris much?
Eggsactly!
Idiotic thing to say..
why?
Because Rafa’s got the game to beat S&V’ers! Deadly passing shots. Only question was whether he’s yet fit enough to deploy it. Last time he came back from a long lay off Rafa needed two tournaments to get up to speed, even on clay.
testing
not able to post anything slightly long. Posts not showing up
Vr!! Gr8 to see you!😀
Ricky we need vr’s inputs…
VR,
You’re back! Please post here again! We missed you do much!
Good to see your posts NNY and Amy!
I made about 3 posts but all vanished. Hopefully this one goes through
Posted a small para but it vanished again. Will leave it to Ricky to help sort this out.
Please stay around vr! We really miss you!
Great to see you nny!😀
Ricky please help…
posted. went to trash for some reason.
ps hello, VR
Brilliant serving from Rafa. Haven’t seen him serve this well in a while!
Amazing how big he can go on the second serve now. Was constantly clocking it in the 160’s. Team Rafa know they need to be very secure in that area and I think he is going to take more chances with it.
Lots of work to be done but better performance today. He got some quality time on Rod Laver arena so now he knows exactly how the court is playing and can prepare accordingly.
Hoping for a kind draw and a deep run for Rafa.
Rafa is on the tennis channel now! Oh my God! Go Rafa! He is in a tiebreak!
Rafa wins the first set! Great reaction from him! This is just wonderful!
Go Rafa!
Looks like I can post now!
Yes, Rafa is back and he wins another title. Great practice on RL arena and I am sure he now knows exactly where to focus on the most. The court looked nice and jumpy and the commentators thought it was playing a bit quicker.
I think this was the best I have seen Rafa serve in a while. His second serve is big now. Consistently clocked in the 160’s. One can tell they are determined to defend the serve better.
Thoughts on forehand and backhand vr?
Also, sanju says he looks slow. Thoughts on his movement?
Great that he is serving so well. That will really help him. I still haven’t got over all the dfs last year.
I just wanted to say that I have been following the whole controversy with Novak. Sorry, but he needs to get vaccinated! Period! No special treatment!
In Australia they have tough rules in place. People there have sacrificed with lockdowns. They are rightfully furious about any kind of preferential treatment.
I am so fed up with athletes who think they can flout the rules! It’s happening here in the states. Unfortunately, politically they can’t crack down here. We have a Governor who is ignoring testing and the virus. The local elected officials are trying to do their best to get people tested. This Governor is a disgrace.
Im a Novax fan (his tennis) but losing respect for the person he needs to get jabbed
However I hope he gets playing – bad for the game if not
I think this has been very bad for the game no matter what happens from here. But tennis will survive.
Eh, I could be wrong, but don’t they say there’s no such thing as bad publicity?
It’s bad for the game if the #1 player thinks he does not have to get vaccinated. That is a disgrace. It is not personal freedom, as his mother says. Now it came out that he tested positive in December. He does not have the right to make other people sick. This is a deadly virus that has killed over 800,000 in the states.
He should not be playing. He should have had to leave the country. No special treatment.