“He Has Played His Cards”: Rafael Nadal Opens Up on Time Wasting Row in 3rd-Round Win Over Cameron Norrie

Rafael Nadal has opened up on British third-round opponent Cameron Norrie complaining to the chair umpire about his alleged slowness between points at the Court Suzanne Lenglen on Saturday.

Speaking to reporters after beating Norrie in straight sets and reaching another round-of-16 at Roland-Garros, Nadal said the Briton tried to put pressure on the chair umpire when he needed to reach for the towel between games.

The Spaniard added that the towels are placed fairly far from where the players are, hinting that there needs to be an allowance for some more time for players if they need to reach for the towel between points or games.

Rafael Nadal says he needs to reach for the towel between points

“He has tried to put pressure on the referee, but between games I need to go to the towel, which is very far,” Nadal said.

He added that while his opponent played his “cards” in pressuring the umpire into giving him a warning for time violation, he could also have made a big deal out of Norrie throwing the ball wrong while serving.

The Spaniard said he made a conscious effort to move quicker between games after receiving an unofficial warning from the umpire.

“He has played his cards. I have not said anything when he has thrown the ball wrong 20 times when serving. (The) chair has warned me and I have tried to go faster,” Nadal said.

Apart from the minor controversy around the alleged wastage of time, the ‘King of Clay’  had things well under control against the 45th-ranked Norrie.

Nadal beat Cameron Norrie in straight sets to move to Round 4

Serving well and whipping winners off the handle, Nadal was on song through the entire stretch of the match and scored decisive breaks of serve in all three games to record a comfortable 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 win.

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He will next play rising Italian tennis star Jannik Sinner, in a rematch of their absorbing tussle at the Italian Open.

Though the Spaniard won the match in straight sets, he faced a tough examination, especially in the opening set.

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With Sinner playing sublime tennis and reaching the fourth-round on the back of some impressive wins, it wouldn’t be a stroll for Nadal on Monday.