Rafael Nadal overcomes Fabio Fognini in four sets in US Open second round match
Published Jul 8, 2013 at 6:00pm
Rafael Nadal overcomes Fabio Fognini in four sets in US Open second round match
Rafael Nadal came from behind to upset Fabio Fognini in the second round at the US Open on Friday with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory. The Spaniard has recovered from a difficult start to the season to produce some of the best tennis of his career in the second half of 2012, and on Friday it was a chance for him to go one better and win the tournament for the first time in 18 years.
The win over Fognini, who has a 20-6 career record against him in four sets, was Nadal’s first victory over the Italian on clay since the 2002 US Open, and it was his first win on the red clay surface at the US Open since 2006 when he defeated Fognini to clinch the final set.
Rafael Nadal overcomes Fabio Fognini in four sets in US Open second round match
Fognini said afterwards: “Sometimes you just find your level, and I’m happy that I’ve found it in the past. I hope that I find it again in the future, and if we get to play some good matches then maybe we can.”
The 29-year-old Spaniard has been struggling in his first half of 2012 but, with his ranking now back up to world number five, he has become more consistent at the best levels of the sport.
With his current form and an improved fitness levels, Fognini now stands a chance to go one better than he did at the US Open last year. However, he will have to come through his own set of struggles to get there, and he will need to find ways to stop the young Spaniard from reaching a tournament for the first time since May 1998.
In the afternoon’s first round, John Isner and Juan Monaco overcame a sluggish first set to overcome John Isner in straight sets. Isner has been one of the surprise success stories of 2012, and today he was the first American wildcard to reach the second round in this event since Jimmy Connors in 1998.
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