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Rafael Nadal
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Rafael Nadal
World number 1, Rafael Nadal was facing off against Dominic Thiem in the quarterfinals. Given that this was a clash between 2 of the best clay court players, Nadal would have to dig deep. Instead, Nadal need not have worked himself into a tizzy. What really happned was that the Spaniard thrashed Austrian fifth seed and reached a record 14th Monte Carlo Masters semi-final.
Nadal romped to his 11th victory at the clay court event by winning 6-0 6-2 in just 67 minutes.
Now, the 31-year old will meet Bulgarian fourth seed Grigor Dimitrov in the last four for a berth in the finals.
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Rafael Nadal
Dimitrov bested Belgian player David Goffin with a 6-4 7-6 (7-5) win despite the latter leading 5-1 in the second set.
On the other side of the draw, second seed Marin Cilic will challenge Kei Nishikori, while Alexander Zverev faces Richard Gasquet.
Thiem was considered as Nadal’s biggest threat as he has beaten the Spaniard on the same surface. To be precise, in Rome last year, as an added bonus, he defeated Novak Djokovic as well.
Thiem was aiming for 2 big scalps in Monte Carlo but was completely outclassed. Nadal needed just 31 minutes to take the first set, winning four of his 11 break points and not facing one against his own serve.
Thiem held serve in the second set to avoid a double-bagel defeat. But he was in no position to threaten Nadal’s serve. As a result, the 16-time Grand Slam champion eased to an emphatic victory.
Rafa is aiming for an 11th French Open title, thus extending his record when the tournament gets under way on 27 May. The Spaniard has won 31 of his past 32 matches on clay.
“I think I played a great match – the best of the tournament,” said Nadal.
“I played very aggressive, I knew I couldn’t give Dominic time to hit the ball and I didn’t.”
Here is how Twitter reacted to the match.
#Nadal can come from baseline while on move (opposite direction) and still answer many drop shots, imagine what he'll do when a slow serve pops up nicely
— R K V (@rkvvss) April 20, 2018
My goodness. #Nadal 🇪🇸 has lost just 11 games in 3 matches at the @ROLEXMCMASTERS Beat Bedene, Khachanov and Thiem 🎾
— Stijn Lieshout (@stijnlieshout) April 20, 2018
Woke up and saw that the #Nadal v. #Thiem match was 5-0 in the first set. Closed my eyes and went back to bed. #KingOfClay #MONTECARLOMASTERS #MonteCarloRolexMasters #ATP #ATPMasters1000 #tennis #Vamos
— Leslie DeGonia (@LeslieDeGonia) April 20, 2018
#Cilic slider is working against righty #Nishikori. Would it work vs lefty #Nadal? Rafa can nail backhand returns but slider in deuce court would at least open up opportunity to attack Rafa wide to his forehand. Attack his sword, not his shield.
— Christopher Johnson (@globaliteman) April 20, 2018
#Rafa may have gotten his first double bagel on the #ATP tour if some of y’all hadn’t started talking #onhere about how he’s never done it before. Y’all jinxed #Nadal. Tuh. 😒#RolexMCMasters #tennis
— Kimberly A. Woodard (@BeingKimmie) April 20, 2018
@RafaelNadal is a god born to play and dominate on his fav surface.
Always on 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥#MonteCarloMasters #Nadal
— Pranjal (@pran7singh) April 20, 2018
https://twitter.com/mrszverev/status/987314191852859392
Wow! I did not see that scoreline coming. #Nadal in blistering form as Dominic was looking really good yesterday. #VamosRafa #RolexMCMasters
— Wayne G (@MrGads2) April 20, 2018
https://twitter.com/theballkidPH/status/987310935701209088
The King of Clay destroys the Prince of Clay! #RolexMCMasters #Nadal #Thiem pic.twitter.com/OoUZ6hZK6D
— Tennis Memes (@ATPWTAMemes) April 20, 2018
https://twitter.com/chrimico/status/987310510415798272
#Nadal absolutely rampant against Thiem. Is there a more fearsome competitor in tennis?
— Francis Cooke (@Frank91E) April 20, 2018
#Nadal absolutely rampant against Thiem. Is there a more fearsome competitor in tennis?
— Francis Cooke (@Frank91E) April 20, 2018
Unfortunately for him though, #Nadal is in his way. Good benchmark to test yourself, I suppose.
— Krupakar Murugavel (@Technospartan) April 20, 2018
An utterly dominant @RafaelNadal demolishes his potential successor @ThiemDomi 6-0, 6-2 at #MonteCarloRolexMasters
A masterly lesson for the apprentice!
The crown still remains firmly with the #KingOfClay. #Vamosrafa #Rafa #Nadal #tennis @ATPWorldTour— sugandh (@SugandhShashwat) April 20, 2018
4-0. 🚨
The #Nadal return location is so far back.🔭
1. Let’s the serve slow down
2. Drops lower into hitting zone
3. Full blooded swing
4. Quickly to the baseline after
5. Opponents generally don’t serve then drop shot.
6. Time to run down angled serves#MonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/4lVq2qqqRG— Craig O'Shannessy (@BrainGameTennis) April 20, 2018
#Nadal 6-0, 6-2 over #Thiem is just a friendly reminder why #Federer skipped the clay court season.
— Mark Bowman (@musichead_mark) April 20, 2018
https://twitter.com/BlairMeikle/status/987342737077923846
Priceless. #Nadal: "I'm not planning on skipping parts of the season. But I can't predict the future." #MonteCarlo
— TENNISMEDIA (@luciahoff) April 20, 2018
Clay brings out the best in him #Nadal #MonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/aiSTCQuP35
— Modise Masuku (@modiseMP) April 20, 2018
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https://twitter.com/McRafax/status/987033724280885248
The #Nadal return local vs BOTH 1st & 2nd serves is soooo far back. He hits more returns in the service box as a result than any of the Top 10. But makes a bucket load and makes the math work in his favor ✅ #MonteCarloMasters pic.twitter.com/y3JDrw2CVC
— Craig O'Shannessy (@BrainGameTennis) April 20, 2018
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https://twitter.com/theballkidPH/status/987302217433530368
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