|
Rafael Nadal is on the verge of finishing the year as world number one after opening his ATP World Tour Finals campaign with a 6-3, 6-2 win over David Ferrer yesterday. |
Nadal arrived at London’s O2 Arena still smarting from a surprise loss against fellow-Spaniard Ferrer in the semi-finals of the Paris Masters on Saturday, but he was quick to avenge that defeat with an emphatic victory in 74 minutes.
The win means the 27-year-old will be guaranteed to end 2013 top of the world rankings, ahead of Novak Djokovic, if he beats either Tomas Berdych or Stanislas Wawrinka in his remaining Group A fixtures at the prestigious season-ending event. It will be the third time Nadal has finished a year as number one, but the first since 2010.
“They are never easy games against David Ferrer, the number three in the world. He is great and having an amazing career,” Nadal said. “He played a lot better than me in Paris last week but today I played a little bit better than him and it’s important for my confidence to start with a victory after Paris. The energy of this stadium is fantastic and hopefully I am ready for tomorrow (Wednesday) against Stanislas Wawrinka.”
If Nadal does end up in top spot, it will complete what the 13-time Grand Slam champion regards as the most satisfying year of his illustrious career.
Ferrer had won just five of his 25 meetings with Nadal, although he was unbeaten in their only two previous indoor encounters, and the world number three hit back with an immediate break of his own. That was the last time the 31-year-old really troubled Nadal, who was gifted another break for a 4-2 lead thanks to a pair of careless forehands from the out-of-sorts Ferrer, who made 33 unforced errors in total.
Nadal continued to blitz Ferrer with his booming backhands and broke again to take the set. Ferrer was looking increasingly unsettled by Nadal’s barrage and he cracked again in the second game of the second set before another break for a 4-0 lead which effectively sealed the world number one’s win.
Earlier, in a late match on Monday, Juan Martin del Potro made a winning start to his campaign as the Argentinian came from a set down to beat France’s Richard Gasquet 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 7-5.
Del Potro had suffered a distressing journey to London after being robbed at Paris’s Gare du Nord railway station, an incident which cost him his passport and a rosary blessed by Pope Francis.