Rafael Nadal gets past Philipp Kohlschreiber in straight sets on Wednesday in Beijing. Next up for Nadal is a quarterfinal date with Fabio Fognini, who destroyed Lleyton Hewitt.
(2) Rafael Nadal d. Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-4, 7-6(3)
Nadal improved to 24-0 on hard courts this season by taking out Kohlschreiber in one hour and 54 minutes during second-round action at the China Open on Wednesday night. Kohlschreiber had extended Nadal to four sets at this summer’s U.S. Open, and the underdog was competitive again in this one. A back-and-forth first set saw Nadal twice give back breaks before his third scalp of the Kohlschreiber serve came at 5-4 to wrap up the opener in style.
Both players took care of their serves throughout the second. Kohlschreiber did not face a single break point and the 25th-ranked German won 16 of 18 first-serve points. Nadal saved three break points to force a tiebreaker, in which he picked up the pace to dominate seven points to three. The second-seeded Spaniard converted match point at 6-3 with a brilliant backhand pass. Nadal struck three aces and two double-faults en route to a quarterfinal clash against Fabio Fognini.
Fabio Fognini d. (WC) Lleyton Hewitt 6-0, 6-2
Hewitt is still going relatively strong at 32 years old, as his recent fourth-round showing at the U.S. Open suggests. But at this point in his career he is prone to flat performances from just about of nowhere, and he endured one on Wednesday. The veteran Aussie won only two total games as Fognini crushed him in just 59 minutes.
Fognini did not lose a single game in the first set, with Hewitt completely unable to find the court. Set two at least featured some entertaining rallies, but almost all went Fognini’s way. The 19th-ranked Italian won six of seven return games in the match, won more than half of the points even when Hewitt made first serves, and won 71 percent of the points in which he got a look at a second delivery. Fognini is 0-2 lifetime against Nadal and 0-5 in sets.
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Reblogged this on Tennis Abides.
I don’t really care if Rafa wins this or not as long as he gets back to Nr. 1 :), it would be easier if Verdy were to have a good day against Djoko but I’m not holding my breath for him (Verdasco) to win.
Shirling, have you read the Djoko-Verdi thread? There was a tiny flicker of hope when he took the 2nd set but it was soon snuffed out.
Thx, just added my contribution to that thread.
It would seem that Fer didn’t have much belief left for the third set, or did Djoko raise his level?
Deifintely the latter. He pretty much conceded the 2nd set without putting much effort into breaking back but stormed back for the third. Verdi fought harder than the scoreline suggests in the final set.
good stuff, thanks
I am wondering about Djoker’s attitude. The way he conceded that 2nd set, you would never see Rafa do that! I think we are seeing some definite chinks in Djoker’s armour. I think if Rafa keeps the pressure on, Djoker will crack. Maybe this is why Rafa chose China Open this time round instead of Tokyo……
wow, early one for Nadal on Friday….
rafaisthebest@October 3, 2013 at 1:18 pm
—Maybe this is why Rafa chose China Open this time round instead of Tokyo—
According to the China Open website, Rafa confirmed his participation on June 8, 2013 – before Djoko made it on June 24, 2013.
Rafa would never base his schedule off the schedule of someone else
thx for the info ed,
Verdy has to be one of the few guys out there, out of the top 10, that has the potential to beat anyone on a given day.
Pitty for him that he’s a bit frail in his head.
Rafa first on court tomorrow, wow! A tard disrespectful, no?
Nadal-Fog, Ferrer-Richie previews – https://tenngrand.com/2013/10/03/beijing-qf-previews-and-picks-nadal-vs-fognini-ferrer-vs-gasquet/