Rafael Nadal continued to pound people at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, as he erased Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 6-1 in Saturday’s first semifinal. Nadal started slow and gave back a break in the first set, but he soon took complete control while racing to victory in one hour and 32 minutes.
The world No. 1 is 6-0 on clay so far and not a single opponent has taken more than four games in any set. None of his first four Monte-Carlo foes won more than five games in total.
“I’m just going to take only the positives out of the match,” Nadal assured after beating Dimitrov. “It’s great to be able to play three, four matches back-to-back. It was great to start again on a good note. Today was maybe the match that I moved the best out of everything. I see a lot of positives for the upcoming weeks. I think physically also I’m at a good level, in terms of moving well.”
If Kei Nishikori is moving less than his best during Sunday’s final, it would be understandable. Whereas Nadal has coasted, Nishikori–who is unseeded and therefore did not benefit from a first-round bye–has played five matches and four have gone the distance. In his last two outings against Marin Cilic and Alexander Zverev, the world No. 36 from Japan spent more than five hours on court.
In Saturday’s second semifinal, Nishikori overcame Zverev 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.
“It was a good match,” Zverev assessed. “My serve wasn’t there today; that’s why I had to play a lot of long rallies. Yesterday (against Richard Gasquet), obviously, the match was very tough physically. I was also very tired. By the end of it I was very tired. All in all, it was a good first week on clay. A lot of positives here. A few things I have to work on–especially my serve. I just have to think positively and I think there’s going to be a lot of other good weeks.”
“I always enjoy playing this tournament,” said Nishikori, who is playing in Monte-Carlo for just the second time and for the first time since his 2012 debut. “It’s a great place to play tennis. I’m happy to be back in final of a Masters 1000 again. It’s been long time for me. Hopefully I can have another good day tomorrow.”
It’s safe to say he will need it.
Semifinal highlights:
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