Big upset for Rafael Nadal as Borna Coric beats him in a battle which lasts 3 sets
Borna Coric emerged victorious against Nadal in the 3 set marathon.
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Aug 18, 2022 4:10 pm
Rafael Nadal and Borna Coric – Source (Twitter)
Rafael Nadal has been handed a shocking defeat at the Cincinnati Masters. The 36-year old playing his first match since opting out from the Wimbledon Semifinal lost to Borna Coric on Wednesday. Coric won the 3 set marathon against Tennis star, registering a 7-6 (11-9), 4-6, 6-3 upset victory. After withdrawing from the Wimbledon Semifinal due to injury, this was Nadal’s 1st game at the Cincinnati Masters.
Nadal vs Coric Head-to-Head: Both the players have met four times in the past and surprisingly, their head-to-head record stands 2-2. They last met five years ago at Canadian Open in 2017 with Nadal winning the contest in straight sets.
Speaking about his comeback, Nadal said, “Abdominal strains are dangerous always. So I had to miss last week in Montreal and I am here to start my professional matches again but I didn’t play a lot at home in terms of matches. I practiced yes, but I was not able to play any sets before here, so just taking things step by step and hoping to be competitive.”
Nadal started the year with a 21-match win streak in which he won the Melbourne Open, Australian Open and Mexican Open title. His run came to an end after he lost the final at Indian Wells Masters against Taylor Fritz.
He began the clay court season at Madrid Open where he reached the quarterfinal. He then faced second round defeat at Italian Open. At the French Open, he defeated the then World No.1 Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinal and went on to win the title after defeating Casper Ruud in straight sets.
The 25-year old Borna Coric started the year at Indian Wells Masters where he faced first round defeat. He then bowed out from the second round at Miami Open. At the clay court season, he bowed out from the first round at Monte Carlo Masters, Madrid Open and Italian Open. At the French Open, he made it to the second round and lost to Grigor Dimitrov.
