Nadal is the King of Rome

The clay court king from Spain prevailed in the final of the ATP Masters in Rome after a lightning start against his long-term rival Novak Djokovic 6:0, 4:6, 6:1. For Nadal it was the ninth success in the Foro Italico and the 81st title overall.

In the final, the spectators saw a hard-fought duel. © ANSA / ETTORE FERRARI

At the climax of the clay court season at the Stade Roland Garros (from May 26th), Nadal (32) is playing for his twelfth victory. After three semi-final defeats in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid, he has found his way back to his best. In Rome he gave up his first set of the tournament in the final, but converted his first match point to victory after 2:25 hours - his 26th in the 54th duel with Djokovic. No other match has occurred more frequently in the history of professional tennis. Djokovic seems weak Djokovic (31) had to go the full distance in the quarter-finals and semi-finals; the Serb initially seemed weak a week after his Masters triumph in Madrid. Nadal dominated at will, and for the first time ever a set between the two exceptional players ended 6-0. However, Nadal missed four break chances in the second round and Djokovic forced extra time.

In the decisive set, Nadal increased the pace again and managed a break in Djokovic's first service game. His opponent's resistance was broken and Nadal successfully defended the title he had won last year against Alexander Zverev (Hamburg).

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Nadal is the King of Rome

With his first tournament win of the season, Rafael Nadal has positioned himself as the top favorite for the French Open in Paris.

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