Rafael Nadal wins the Western & Southern Open for the first time in his career and completes the improbable Montreal-Cincinnati double with a victory over John Isner on Sunday. With the win, Nadal will be seeded second at the U.S. Open.
Rafael Nadal’s remarkable, resurgent 2013 campaign keeps getting better and better.
Nadal captured his ninth title of the season and first of his career in Cincinnati with a 7-6(8), 7-6(3) win over John Isner in the final of the Western & Southern Open on Sunday afternoon. The Spaniard fired six aces and saved all three of the break points he faced to prevail in one hour and 54 minutes.
Isner, as he often does, had delivered a flair for the dramatic during his surprising run to the championship match. The 6’10” American had won four of five tiebreakers this week while upsetting Novak Djokovic 7-5 in the third set and saving a match point in the second set against Juan Martin Del Potro. In this one, however, Isner did not have quite enough at the crucial moments.
Nadal faced two set points at 5-6 in the opener, but he fought them off with clutch serving. The No. 4 seed saved another in the tiebreaker before finally sealing the deal on serve at 9-8 when Isner netted a backhand. Nadal ultimately got the job done without earning a single break point against his opponent’s huge serve. The second ‘breaker, though, was more straightforward. Nadal raced to a 5-1 lead an ultimately converted championship point with a perfect forehand passing shot.
“It means a lot winning two straight titles on hard (courts),” assured Nadal, who also triumphed last week at the Montreal Masters. “It’s just amazing for me. I never did something like this in my career.”
“I played extremely well all week,” Isner reflected. “I played well again today. Unfortunately, it just wasn’t good enough. Unfortunately for me, I ran up against one of the greatest tennis players of all time. As I said on the court, i’m going to hold my head up high after today’s match and after this whole week. But Rafa was better than me today.”
Nadal will move up to No. 2 in the world on Monday and be seeded second for the U.S. Open. He will also win the U.S. Open Series unless Isner reaches at least the semifinals next week in Winston-Salem. Isner’s Cincinnati run earns him a Top 16 in New York.
highlights:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0yQ8ZN6tbs]
Wow.. Majestic and a mesmerizing performance from rafa really amazing run.. played 3 masters 1000 on hc n won 3 perfect ..
Congrats rafa n all his fans 😉
But here i want to say something ..
in trophy ceremony while john was praising nadal as he is one of the greatest players if all time.. at the same time rafa was drinking water and i felt bad i felt the arrogance n proud which i didn’t like..
but then something i liked so much that was rafa sitting on court with ball boys & girls for a group photo that was sweet.. 🙂
you clearly weren’t watching what the rest of us were. Isner called Rafa one of the greatest of all time and Rafa laughed like Isner must have been joking.
It was an embarrassed laugh, like “no way I am one of the best ever.”
I m just saying when john was calling him one of the all time great rafa was drinking water and i just felt he was not even paying attention to what isner was saying.. i never like these type of attitudes even if its murray or delpo who r my fav guys..
he was listening. he laughed when he heard John say it.
BTW ricky! who are your fav guys???
i’m a writer i have to stay unbiased!!!
(but it isn’t too hard to figure out / find out)
well i got it.. u r also a rafan 😉
Ricky
Yes, that is exactly what I saw. Rafa did laugh and seemed embarrassed by the compliment. Rafa’s humility and modesty are well known.
As far as Rafa drinking water, I assume he was feeling thirsty and wanted to keep hydrated after the match. I have no doubt that Isner did not in any way think that Rafa was giving him attitude. I thought both guys were quite complimentary to each other. It was nice to see. Isner deserved the recognition for a great effort at this tournament. To take out the likes of Djoker and Delpo, is quite an accomplishment.
I think these players handle things so much better than their fans or those watching at times.
wc0206@August 19, 2013 at 4:16 am
—but it isn’t too hard to figure out / find out—
Ricky, your avatar reveals your favorite player, and your attitude towards Rafa is in accordance with that.
no
Maybe Rafa can be faulted for a few things, but ARROGANCE definitely is NOT one of them
May be.. but i felt it so i posted my thoughts its my personal observation so it doesn’t mean that you agree with me.. everybody has his own opinions .. i praise good things without any hesitation but at the same time i criticize those things which are not good so i didn’t like that gesture of rafa so i said what i felt.. and at the same time i liked his Frank group photo with ball boys & girls so i praised that act too..
well go watch it again. it should be pretty obvious.
Sana, he had just been through a gruelling match, in the heat. Would you rather he had allowed himself to be dehydrated while nodding politely to Izzy’s speech? Do you have any idea what such a lapse can do to his overall physical state a week before a Slam? Anyway, as Ricky says, there was nothing rude or arrogant about Rafa’s demeanor or attitude, just watch the tape………
yeah i watched it again.. he,was not laughing as ricky said but yeah there was a little smile on his face so i take my words back.. 😉
When Raonic said in his speech that Rafa had given him a clinic,Rafa smiled he also smiled when Isner paid him a compliment. Normally, they present both trophies before the speeches so both players are side by side for the speeches. In Montreal and Cincy, the winner is out of view and how would Rafa know what Isner was going to say so he wasn’t drinking water whilst he was saying it? What did you want him to do? Choke on the water?
Also, this was the final match, and the players wouldn’t have the luxury of going straight to the locker room for recovery activities, they have to wait, on court, for long drawn out ceremonial things. Obviously they are pretty dehydrated after a long match and it is important to rehydrate timeously……..
Sana- He is not very comfortable receiving compliments on the face and that too in front of a crowd, he always is like ‘ok ok dont embarass me further :-)’
And Rafa and arrogant – no way, not even the slightest. He is called ‘Humble Bull’ for a good reason.
He is more than happy wth spotlight and limelight on others, I doubt he cares what press writes and how much they praise his peers compared to him 🙂
haha that’s funny ok ok don’t embarrass me further 😀 really it is, i m laughing n feeling good now.. may be i observed wring because i m a ftesh tennis follower as compare to you guys 🙂
sorry i meant *wrong
*fresh
Fantastic read by Jesse Pentecost:
http://www.tennisfrontier.com/blogs/jesse-pentecost/we-might-run-out-of-words/
“For now, Nadal has won twenty-six Masters 1000 titles, including a record-equalling five this season. It’s an accomplishment that is only enhanced by recalling that none of the five were Monte Carlo, which otherwise exists only that he might augment his tally by one each year. Aside from that, the only other Masters event Nadal hasn’t won this year was Miami, which he didn’t play. In order to break the record, which was only set two years ago by Djokovic, Nadal will have to win either Shanghai or Paris. History suggests that he is unlikely to do so. Then again, the Spaniard has already spent the season showing history just where it can shove its suggestions.”
“Then again, the Spaniard has already spent the season showing history just where it can shove its suggestions.”
I love it 🙂
In my eyes Rafa is the The Greatest most Charismatic Champion we have ever seen and has lit up tennis for the nearly a decade with his ability to overcome all the obstacles in his path.
It must have been gut wrenching for Isner to lose that match but he came across as just happy to have played in the final and his tribute to Rafa was absolutely genuine – unlike the platitudes that so often get trotted out on these occasions.
Also the crowd were great. Naturally huge roars for Issy’s winners and chants to spur him on but Rafa also got plenty of noisy support!
ed251137, I am not a fan of big serve players but I am in awe of Izzy right now. The man is clearly working on his game, a la Rafa! I like that attitude. His forehand was almost Rafa-like in its execution. He just needs to work on the mental side, his shot selection at times was atrocious. But I like that he is working to go beyond being just a serve demon.
I agree with the thoughts about Isner. He was quite gracious even in the disappointment of defeat. He gave it his best but still lost to Rafa. A player can live with it if they know that they came out there and gave it their best shot. Isner did that. Rafa certainly acknowledged how tough it was to play him!
I make no bones about the fact that I do not like the big serving guys, but Isner really showed some outstanding groundstrokes in this match. I respect his effort to keep improving his game and not just rest on his ability to hit lots of aces and huge serves.
I think Isner could work on his mental strength and fitness. His forehand was very impressive.
The crowd reacted as I expected them to – cheering on Isner as the hometown player and appreciating Rafa’s outstanding tennis. Nice to see!
As for whether Rafa wins Shanghai or Paris, I could care less. It’s up to Rafa to decide what his goals are for the rest of the year. Given the year he has had up to this point, I could care less about either tournament. He has achieved so many records. I am beyond proud of him.
I know he will not say it, but he wants to win the USO. I am sure he is happy about being #2 again. But he doesn’t like to make too much of it.
I would prefer him to win USO and WTF :-). It will be a perfect end to the year 🙂
All this masters 1000 wins are useless, if Rafa does not use the confidence gained from these wins to lift the US Open. US Open is the ultimate prize, the masters 1000 are simply the stepping stone to that prize
No Atul, I disagree. No Masters 1000 win is useless, they offer 1000 points and are the second important tournaments after Slams. It is as tough to win a Masters as it is to win a Slam, reason being matches are played back to back Wednesdaay – Sunday with no gap, its best of 3, so chances of upsets are higher.
Yes it would be great if he wins USO but if he doesn’t , it doesn’t make his Masters 1000 wins any less significant.
Sanju, while yuor thoughts are technically correct, but I have a question for you.
What would make you happier? (OR rather what would add more to Rafa’s legacy?). A year like 2010 when rafa loses early in both Montreal and Cincy but goes on to win the US Open or a HYPOTHETICAL year like 2013 when Rafa wins both Montreal and Cincy but fails to win the US Open
atul,
The simple fact is that things are different than they were in 2010. Rafa needed these Masters 1000 wins to get back up to #2. You don’t think that’s important? He’s in a much better position with the #2 ranking now. He won’t play Djoker until the final. It will be either Murray or Ferrer in the semis. The draw will still present its challenges given how many players have stepped it up and are playing well. But it’s a good thing to be back in the #2 spot.
Also, Rafa needed these two wins to get much needed match play and rankings points. The semifinal win over Djoker was huge for Rafa’s confidence. After being off for six or seven weeks and getting treatment on the knee, Rafa needed to find his form again and start winning.
Also, would you think that the clay court Masters wins don’t mean anything for Rafa? Those Masters wins are important for rankings points and also confidence and getting into good form.
So I do not agree with you. It’s comparing apples and oranges to use 2010 as an analogy to 2013. Rafa was coming off big wins with RG and Wimbledon that year. He had treatment on the knee and wasn’t able to practice much before he came to Montreal. Getting to the semis and losing to Murray was a decent result and got him some important match play. Then he lost in the quarterfinals at Cincy. If you remember, he came into the USO nowhere near his best form. The only reason he got through the early rounds was because of the big serve he brought out. He also admitted that he didn’t want to get hurt in the warmup tournaments. He had tweaked his stomach muscle, so was holding back with his serving. He got a great draw and was able to work himself into his best form.
Rafa doesn’t have that luxury now. The men’s game has gotten even more competitive in the last three years. Also he is coming off a very tough first round loss at Wimbledon. That one had to hurt even though it was about the knee and lack of preparation. But coming off a loss like that can still dent the confidence. Whatever treatment Rafa got for the knee seems to have worked well. He came back on a mission. I didn’t expect him to win either event. But I am not about to assume that because he has now done so, that it means he won’t win the USO.
Naturally devotees of Rafa want him to win everything! As far as I am concerned he has already achieved miracles so even if he does not go on to win USO I can live with that. Shanghai is neither here nor there for the moment (apart from the tantalising prospect of him regaining No.l). The one I would most like to see him win this year is the WTF. This is my least favourite tournament but, in the eyes of many people, it is a glaring hole in his CV. But to hope for that is asking a lot after the demands he has made on his body already this year and the fact that he makes no bones about indoor hard courts being his least favourite venues.
I have been following Ricky since 2008 and I am actually not too sure whom does he like the most among big 4… it is certainly not nadal….my guess is federer.. but I admit, he does a really good job as a professional and that is why even someone like me who has been following him for long is unsure. Of course he is a big isner fan, he is his countryman too after all 🙂
and for the above discussion, well ‘useless’ was a really harsh word to use…even inappropriate to use for masters 1000 wins…I would say these accomplishments leave your season ‘incomplete’ from being the best if you are unable to win slams to back them up… winning rogers cup-cincy double which even roger has failed to achieve is a seven-star feat !
That’s not correct, VM. Ricky outs himself somewhere in his profiles as a rafafan, but he does a good job at being objective – as he should as a journo. I know this as a long time lurker at the late TT site.
Question for you, Ricky: Why were Germans not welcome at TT? There was no way to register as a German, because this country didn’t exist in the sign up options, lol!
What is Cheryl Murray doing these days? I loved her blog entries.
Four Masters titles in a row. Never done before.
Does anyone express simple joy for winning like Rafael Nadal?
#VamosChamp
#AllCourtSpecialist
atul,
everyone knows that winning masters 1000s is very difficult for the reasons restated above
there are more than twice the number of masters 1000s tournaments each year than slams — if they were say about twice as easy to win you would expect multiple slam winners to hold about 4 times as many 1000s master titles. Roger than would be expected to hold about 4 x 17 = 68 masters 1000s titles. Given that there are more hardcourt masters than claycourt ones you would expect him to at least be over half of that number so at least about 34. I think in this case the numbers do tell a story as to how difficult these are to win.
Conspirator: So true. Djokovic is triumphant at defeating his foe: Federer is complacent (bordering on smug) at receiving what is his rightful due: Rafa’s joy has a wonderful innocence – like a small boy who has just received the Xmas present he’d been longing for.
Chloro: From 2007 onwards Roger put all his efforts into winning the Slams and WTF until 2012, that is, when he took advantage of Rafa’s absence and went flat out to amass enough points to climb back up the rankings.
it was his bad luck Rafa stormed back on the scene to spoil the party.
rafa will end his career with 40 masters 1000 in bag … -_-
Please, Ricky is a Fedfanboy, just look at his avatar!
rafaisthebest@August 19, 2013 at 3:15 pm
I wrote the same almost at the same time!
Ricky Dimon’s Sportswriter Profile/BleacherReport:
Favorite Athlets: Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods,LeBron James, Rafael Nadal, Jerry Rice
🙂
The ATP rankings are finally updated. It’s sweet to see Rafa moving up in the rankings!.
Rafa is keeping an eye on the rankings! He talked again about earning the points and his position in the rankings.
Rafa: —“It means a lot, being able to win two straight titles, two Masters 1000 on hard back to back is just amazing for me,” Nadal said, reflecting on his accomplishment. “I never did something like this in all my career. So it was an emotional moment for so many different facts. First of all, I won a very important tournament, Masters 1000. Second thing, after all the problems that I had, I mean, it was just two weeks in a row on hard playing at the highest level. Then the ranking is there. I was playing for a lot of points this week. And I’m in a good position.”—
John Isner is No.14 – behind Tommy Haas, who has the same amount of points.
http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2013/08/33/Cincinnati-Sunday-Nadal-Isner.aspx