“Not Too Happy to Play Rafa”: Diego Schwartzman Ahead of His French Open 2021 Quarterfinal Clash Against Rafael Nadal

Argentine ace, Diego Schwartzman will once again face Rafael Nadal at French Open 2021. He hasn’t had any success against the 13-time champ, who is in fiery form once again.

After his tough victory over Jan-Lennard Struff, Schwartzman was happy on reaching his third quarterfinal in the last four editions of Roland Garros. But he was also honest about his displeasure with playing against Nadal.

“I am very happy to be in the quarter-finals again. I am not too happy to play Rafa in the next round but let’s see what happens.”

Diego Schwartzman on playing against Rafael Nadal

Overall, Schwartzman has only won one match against Rafa in the 11 meetings between them. And at French Open, they have played twice, with Schwartzman winning a solitary set in 2018. They both faced off last year as well where Nadal won in straight sets. Hence, Schwartzman wants the right attitude for a better fight against Rafa.

“I think at the beginning of every match against Rafa, you have to walk on the court thinking to win the match, to have opportunities, and to get opportunities. Think about something else and not about Rafa on the other side of the net. If you think about Rafa in Roland Garros, he’s very difficult to play against,” Schwartzman said.

Overall yet, Schwartzman is going with an optimistic outlook to the match. He is taking his match against Rafa as a benchmark to find out his level.

“You have to go to court, think about the tactics, and think about how to play your best game. Playing against Rafa in these kinds of tournaments, it’s always a good step, a good time to know how good you are playing. It’s always a good challenge. I know we played two times here were good matches, and now let’s see what happens.”

Both Nadal and Schwartzman were on the brink of losing their opening set in their respective fourth-round matches. Jannik Sinner was serving for the set at 5-4 when Nadal broke him, whereas Schwartzman was 5-1 down and saved six set points and later took the opening set, 7-5.

Eventually, both Nadal and Schwartzman won in straight sets. It will be a high-quality match between the two players.

Read more: “Not Leave Free Space Against Top Guys”: Jannik Sinner’s Honest Revelation After Crushing Defeat Against Rafael Nadal at French Open 2021