WATCH: Rafael Nadal Has a Bizarre Hand-Shake and Confrontation at the Net With Lorenzo Sonego at Wimbledon Championships 2022

Continuing his winning run, Rafael Nadal was at his best as he outplayed Lorenzo Sonego in the third round of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. Being in dominant form since the start of the match, the Spaniard took 2 hours and 4 minutes to beat Lorenzo 6-1 6-2 6-4.

While the match was a delight for the tennis fans, it also carried a package of drama with itself. Even though the reasons for the drama remain unknown, speculations are being raised saying Nadal had some issues with Lorenzo. The traces of such issues were visible post the match when the two had a long debate during the customary handshake.

Rafael Nadal and Lorenzo Sonego indulge in post-match banter

Showing a glimpse of his vintage form, Rafael Nadal kicked off the match in his usual fashion. Winning the opening set with ease, he carried the same form into the second set. Having a two-set lead, the Spaniard moved into the third. When he had a 4-2 lead in the third set, Nadal suffered a loss of 8 points to enable Lorenzo to equal the score in the third set.

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With 4-4 on the scoreboard, an irritated Nadal called Lorenzo to the net to have a word with him. Having a brief discussion, the two moved back to the baselines, continuing the game. Having his elegant strokes in place, the 2022 Australian Open and French Open champion won the set 6-4. While the fans thought that the banter had ended, the 22-time Grand Slam champion had more in his bag.

Winning the final point with an unreturned serve at the ‘T’, Nadal moved towards the net for the customary handshake. However, unlike the usual ones, this was a bit longer. During the handshake, Nadal and Lorenzo indulged in a rather long conversation at the net with each other.

Did Nadal and Sonego resolve their issues in the locker room?

While the two players looked to be putting up their views at the net, the discussion ended with what looked like Nadal proposing to have a word in the locker room.

Although the reasons remain unknown, according to the speculations, Nadal had a problem with the long grunting of Sonego during the points. It is being assumed that the former World No. 1, a grunter himself, had problems with Lorenzo’s extended grunting.

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Following the discussion, Nadal cleared the air, saying, “My intention was never to bother him at all. Just to tell one thing that was bothering me that I think he was doing in that moment, but that’s it.”

While the repartee between the players became a topic of discussion at that moment, it was overshadowed by Nadal’s comfortable win. With the win over Lorenzo in place, the Spaniard will next face Botic van de Zandschulp in the fourth round.?