Defending Champ Nadal Recovers to Oust Isner in Five Sets at French Open

Rafael Nadal trailed 2-1 in sets after an error-strewn start to the defense of his French Open title. He turned it around with tennis that his American opponent said was some of the best he’s ever seen.

“What it came down to is the way he played in the fourth and fifth sets,” John Isner told reporters after his 6-4, 6-7 (2-7), 6-7 (2-7), 6-2, 6-4 loss yesterday. “I haven’t seen tennis like that ever.”

With his No. 1 ranking on the line, along with the continued pursuit of a record-tying sixth French Open title, Nadal tied the first-round match with an error-free fourth set before completing the recovery by attacking his opponent’s serve with powerful returns.

“Tough, tough moments for me,” Nadal told reporters. “I didn’t play well the tiebreaks. I played too nervous.”

Nadal, 24, won his only five-set match at the French Open to avoid his first opening-round exit at a Grand Slam tournament and the ignominy of becoming the only defending men’s champion to lose in round one at Roland Garros.

The victory takes the Spaniard’s record at the clay-court major to 39-1, his only loss having come in 2009 to Robin Soderling in the round of 16.

Unless he wins the second major of the year, Nadal will relinquish his No. 1 ranking to Novak Djokovic, the Serb who beat him in the finals of Rome and Madrid before Roland Garros. Even if Nadal ties Bjorn Borg’s record of six titles, Djokovic will still top the rankings if he reaches the final.

Djokovic vs. Hanescu

Djokovic, whose unbeaten run since the start of 2011 stands at 38 matches, plays Victor Hanescu of Romania today in the second round.

Former champion Roger Federer of Switzerland faces France’s Maxime Teixeira, women’s top seed Caroline Wozniacki plays Canada’s Aleksandra Wozniak and defending women’s champion Francesca Schiavone of Italy meets Russia’s Vesna Dolonts.

Nadal, a nine-time major champion, looked to be in command of yesterday’s match, leading by a set and by 4-2 in the second. Isner then broke back for 4-4 and won the set in a tiebreak as Nadal committed unforced errors from the baseline.

In the third set, Isner kept Nadal under pressure by rushing to the net and overcame two set points at 6-5 down with a pair of service winners.

Booming Serves

In the tiebreak, the 6-foot-9 (2.05 meter) American sent down serves as fast as 229 kilometers per hour (142 mph) to take a 3-0 lead.

Nadal then dumped a forehand into the net to hand his opponent four set points. Isner shouted and pumped his fist when he won the set with a forehand return.

“I had the match under control and then I didn’t have chances to win the second and the third,” said Nadal, who made 21 unforced errors in the first three sets.

The champion turned it around when he had to, producing eight winners and no errors as he twice broke Isner’s serve to win the fourth set.

“The first break of the fourth was very, very important for me,” Nadal said. “Because if I go to another tiebreak, I would have been in big danger. So when I won the fourth, I know in the fifth there is no tiebreak. So I felt a little bit more confident.”

Nadal broke Isner’s serve early in the decider.

“It was just too good,” Isner said. “He basically hit three return winners.”

The Spaniard said he hadn’t been intimidated by Isner’s reputation as a five-set fighter. The 26-year-old last year won the longest match in tennis history, an 11-hour, 5-minute marathon against Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon.

“I have a good record, too, in five setters,” said Nadal, who has won 15 of the 18 he’s played. “That gave me confidence when I was in the fifth set.”

2 Responses to Defending Champ Nadal Recovers to Oust Isner in Five Sets at French Open

Taran says:

August 24, 2011 at 2:28 pm

This does look prmosiing. I’ll keep coming back for more.

Deandre says:

August 25, 2011 at 4:24 pm

Furrealz? That’s mravelously good to know.