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  5. Berrettini vs Nadal 2022 Australian Open Semifinal Highlights: Nadal beats Berrettini to reach final

Berrettini vs Nadal 2022 Australian Open Semifinal Highlights: Nadal beats Berrettini to reach final

Putting up a phenomenal performance, Nadal showed he is getting better with age as he defeated his 25-year-old Italian rival 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 after conceding a set despite going 2-0 up.

Written by: India TV Sports Desk Melbourne Published : Jan 28, 2022 8:00 IST, Updated : Jan 28, 2022 12:22 IST
Rafael Nadal exults after winning a point against Matteo
Image Source : DARRIAN TRAYNOR/GETTY IMAGES

Rafael Nadal exults after winning a point against Matteo Berrettini during Australian Open 2022 semifinals in Melbourne on Friday.

Nadal vs Berrettini Live Streaming Details: How and when to watch the 2022 Australian Open semifinal

Match Progress

  • Match score Nadal (6) vs Berrettini (7) 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3
  • 4th set Nadal used his years of experience and played deep from the baseline to deal with the increasing serve speed of Berrettini. It soon paid divided as Nadal broke the Italian in the 8th game of the set and then hold on to his serve to reach his sixth Australian Open final.
  • 3rd set Berrettitni returned to the basics as he first worked on holding on to his serve. This soon brought confidence as he broke Rafa's service late and soon took the set to take the game into the fourth set.
  • 2nd set Nadal turned further bullies and dominated the 2nd set against a struggling Berrettini, who struggled to get his act together.
  • 1st set Nadal broke Berrettini early in the set and forced the game into long rallies to take the first set with little discomfort
  • Berrettini vs Nadal is underway!
  • Head-to-head Nadal and Berrettini have faced each other once at the 2019 US Open semifinal, where the Spanish star won in straight sets
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Match Highlights

4th set 6-3 Rafa does it! Takes the match 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 to reach the Australian Open final for the sixth time in his career. Berrettini deserves praises as well as he came back hard in the game but Nadal used his years of experience to thwart the Italian challenge. The 20-time Grand Slam champions now await the winner of the second semifinal between Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas (scheduled at 2 PM IST). Do follow our Live coverage of that match as well.

4th set 5-3 Nadal's return position has changed in response to Berrettini's increasing serve speed. The Spanish is playing deeper and deeper from the baseline; a strategy that worked like a peach against Shapovalov in the quarterfinals and works here too as he breaks the Italian to go 5-3 up. Stretching the game to long rallies again, he will serve for the match.

4th set 4-3 Nadal is showing how he won those 20 Major titles. He is using experience to grind out those important points and holds on to his serve.

4th set 3-3 Berrettini is in no mood to twitch as his serves are too hot to handle for Nadal at the moment. The Spanish is unable to find that good return to open up the play. That's largely down to Berrettini's brute force.

4th set 3-2 Nadal is being spot on with his serves as well. It's now down to who is going to blink first.

4th set 2-2 It's a smooth showing from Berrettini now as he is picking up points quickly to close the game.

4th set 2-1 Nadal was made to work hard to take that game and the 34-year-old Spaniard used his experience to get the job done. This surely keeps the pressure on Berrettini.

4th set 1-1 With confidence comes belief and good decision making, and Berrettini is just exuding that. Reading the court with more accuracy now, his volleys are hurting Nadal.

4th set 1-0 Nadal holds on to his service at the beginning of the fourth set. Nadal has up the ante and now it's a more evenly-contest battle. 

4th set

3rd set 6-3 Take a bow, Berrettini! Just when we thought Nadal is running away with this one, the Italian brought himself back in the game. His energy levels are up, shots are oozing with confidence as he picks four points on the trot to take the set.

3rd set 5-3 Berrettini finally breaks Nadal's serve! Credit must be given to the Italian as he got himself 3 break points for the game before breaking with a bullet of a forehand. The stage seems set for another comeback. 

3rd set 2-3 Berrettini is slowly building up in confidence here as he is managing to hold on to his serves.

3rd set 1-1 Beautiful yet brutal! Nadal is running circles around Berrettini, who is receiving one body blow after another. It's going to be hard to come back from that. However, for the record, Nadal did commit his first double fault of the match. 

3rd set 0-1 Berrettini is trying something he didn't do in the first two sets and that is holding his serve. However, rallies are largely going to Nadal as he stretched the game to a deuce.

3rd set

2nd set 6-2 Berrettini has been in double mind whether to approach the net or not and loses the initiative as Nadal takes the second set while giving away no breathing space to the rival. It's all Nadal at the moment.

2nd set 5-2 Some respectability to the scoreboard for the Italian as he is catching up big time at the moment. Nadal will serve for the 2nd set.

2nd set 5-1 It's pretty evident that Nadal is targeting Berrettini's backhand. The burly Italian possesses one of the strongest serve and forehand on the tour but the backhand has always been his shortcoming. But make no mistake, not many can expose that as good as Nadal does. The contest is a total mismatch at the moment.  

2nd set 4-1 Berrettini is having a mental battle with himself now as he is trying to return to the basics to get his act together and finally manages to pick a game. The 25-year-old Italian will have to do more than that if he doesn't want to be a mere spectator in the game.

2nd set 4-0 Nadal is relentless now as he is killing off points at will while dominating the Italian irrespective who is serving.

2nd set 3-0 Nadal has turned further bullish in the second set as he annihilated Berretini with his inch-perfect tennis. Berrettini's shoulders have dropped and is venting out in frustration as Nadal breaks his serve twice in as many games.

2nd set

1st set 6-3 Nadal takes the first set in a dominant fashion. Still early days as a lot can happen in this game

1st set 5-3 Berrettini barely holds on as Nadal went for the kill. The 20-time Major champion will now serve for the set

1st set 3-1 Berrettini picks his first game and finally got some control in his game as he is looking for those aces to kill off points as quickly as possible.

1st set 3-0 Nadal is off to a flyer as he is forcing the game into long rallies. Berrettini knows he can't let Rafa do that and that is often leading to unwanted unforced errors as he tries to close the point early.

1st set 2-0 Nadal breaks early by taking his classic defensive stance to deal with Berrettini's early aggressions. The Italian must have understood that he needs to tone it down or he will be soon out of the 1st set.

1st set 1-0 Nadal takes the first game on the serve but not before Berrettini made his intention clear by dragging the game to deuce.

9:10 AM Both the players are out on the court and warming up before the semi-final begins under the roof  as its pouring down heavily in Melbourne. Nadal will be the first to serve.

Nadal's road to semifinals

Quarterfinals Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3

Round 4 beat Adrian Mannarino 7-6 (14/12), 6-2, 6-2

Round 3 beat Karen Khachanov 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1

Round 2 beat Yannick Hanfmann 6-2, 6-3, 6-4

Round 1 beat Marcos Giron 6-1, 6-4, 6-2

 

Berrettini's road to semifinals

Quarterfinals Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 3-6, 6-2
Round 4 beat Pablo Carreno-Busta 7-5, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4
Round 3 beat Carlos Alcaraz 6-2, 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7/5)
Round 2 beat Stefan Kozlov 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1
Round 1 beat Brandon Nakashima 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3

 

Australian Open 2022 men's singles semifinals: Nadal's shot at history

Even before he hit his first ball at this year’s Australian Open, Rafael Nadal knew he had an open door to set the men's record for most career Grand Slam singles titles.

So far he hasn’t let it close.

Nadal plays Matteo Berrettini in one semifinal on Friday at Melbourne Park, knowing he's potentially two match wins from a 21st major title. He's tied for the record of 20 with Roger Federer, who is recovering from right knee surgery, and Novak Djokovic, who was deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament following an 11-day visa saga over his decision not to be vaccinated for COVID-19.

In the other semifinal, Daniil Medvedev plays Stefanos Tsitsipas in a rematch of their 2021 Australian Open semifinal. Medvedev won last year's semifinal, then lost to Djokovic in the final.

Australian Open 2022: Nadal beats Shapovalov in five sets to enter semifinals

Rafael Nadal has stayed on track for a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam singles title with a topsy-turvy 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3 win over Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals at Melbourne Park.

Nadal had several medical timeouts in the 4-hour match, appearing related to stomach issues.

Nadal is tied for most major singles titles by a male player with Roger Federer, who is not playing here due to continuing recovery from right knee surgery, and Novak Djokovic, who was deported before the tournament began over visa issues concerning his decision not to be vaccinated for COVID-19.

 

 

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