1 Response to miami09delpotro_nadal

1. Voo de Mar says:

   February 24, 2022 at 3:22 am

   Points won by each set: | 31-29, 21-30, 47-42 |
   Points won directly behind the serve:
   20 % Del Potro – 20 of 97
   21 % Nadal – 22 of 103

   A win of double importance for Del Potro [8]:
   – prior to that match he had a miserable record against the Big 3 guys (0-4 vs Nadal & Federer, 0-3 vs Djokovic); in those 11 matches he didn’t even play a tie-break!
   – he was a front-runner, he had very little experience in winning matches being close to lose them
   Therefore already stealing the opener was a new satisfying ground for him (Nadal led 4:3*, 40/30 having a good position to finish the point), but when he trailed 0:3* in the decider, it seemed rather improbable he would win the match… but he somehow did it! He erased a double break deficit rather easily, at 3-all he withstood a break point with a backhand stop-volley. The last 30 minutes of the match were played under the floodlights, Del Potro was playing his best tennis (especially at the net) despite alleged problems with his left thigh (medical time-out). He wasted three match points at 6:5 (Nadal’s two aces), but stayed cool and collected the last five points to improve his record in the deciding tie-breaks to 2:1 (finished his career with one of the best Open Era records: 16-5; there was 10 won in a row). So that match against Nadal it was an amazing boost of confidence for the 21-year-old Argentinian which allowed him to believe that he would not only beat the best players in the world – he would also do this being on the verge of defeat… Among players born in the 80s, apart from Del Potro, only Tsonga, Berdych & Wawrinka were able to defeat the Big 4 in the ‘best of 3’ and ‘the best of 5’ matches.

   Serve & volley: Del Potro 0/1, Nadal 2/3

   # Comparison of their two matches concluded in deciding TBs:
   Miami ’09 (QF): Del Potro d. Nadal 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3)… 3 hours 1 minute… Total points: 99-101… 4 pts away
   Rio ’16 (SF): Del Potro d. Nadal 5-7, 6-4, 7-6(5)… 3 hours 8 minutes… Total points: 99-101… 3 pts away

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