Nadal Ups Mark to 50-1 at Roland Garros After Win Over Almagro
June 6, 2012 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Photo credit: Kenneth B. Goldberg
At the 2012 French Open, second-seeded Rafael Nadal defeated fellow Spaniard, the number 12 seed Nicolas Almagro, 7-6(4), 6-2, 6-3 on Wednesday to claim a spot in the semifinals. Nadal is now two wins away from a record seventh title on the red clay of Paris. With his win over Almagro, Nadal increases his lifetime record to 50-1 at Roland Garros, with his only loss coming from Robin Soderling in 2009. Against the 12th-seeded Almagro, he faced four break points, but managed to save them all.
Nadal’s awaits the winner of the quarterfinal match between David Ferrer and Andy Murray for his semifinals opponent. The Ferrer-Murray match was delayed early in the third set when a rain shower passed through Roland Garros.
Almagro pressed against Nadal in the first set, taking him to a tie-breaker and cutting a 5-1 loss to 5-4. Nadal then responded by closing out the set with a huge forehand down the line that Almagro could not handle. He then hit 121 mph serve that Almagro could not return.
Including the two hours and 46 minutes he took to dispatch Almagro, Nadal has spent a grand total of 10 hours, 37 minutes on the court.
