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Saturday April 4, 2009

Argentine wonder Del Potro stuns Nadal to set up semi-final clash with Murray

MIAMI: Juan Martin del Potro shocked world No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals of the Miami Masters on Thursday, downing the top-seeded Spaniard 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-3).

In the semi-finals, the sixth-seeded Argentinian will face world No. 4 Andy Murray of Britain, who beat eighth-seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco 6-1, 6-2.

Nadal, who won his sixth Grand Slam title at the Australian Open, also won the first Masters 1000 crown of the year at Indian Wells in March.

He had won all four of his previous meetings with del Potro without dropping a set — including a quarter-final victory at Indian Wells.

Standout faces: Singer Enrique Iglesias and former tennis star Anna Kournikova watching the Miami Masters semi-final match between Venus and Serena Williams on Thursday. - AFP

But before a raucous, largely pro-del Potro crowd the Argentinian fought back from 0-3 down in the third set to prevail in the tiebreaker.

“Today, I did everything,” del Potro said. “I served very good, and hit with my forehand with big confidence.

“To beat Rafa, you have to be in good shape in every part of your game, and today I did a great job.”

Nadal saved three match points in the 12th game of the final set — two of them with aces — to force the tiebreaker.

But del Potro was not to be denied, winning the final five points of the decider to advance.

Del Potro hit three straight winners to give himself three more match points at 6-3 in the tiebreaker. Nadal fired a backhand into the net on the first of them, sending the fans into a frenzy.

“Wonderful for the crowd, terrible for me,” said Nadal, although he said he enjoyed the excitement surrounding the three-hour duel.

“That’s good for tennis, to have a crowd like this. It was a really good atmosphere.”

Juan Martin del Potro celebrates his upset win over Rafael Nadal. — AFP

Nadal, who also reached the final in Rotterdam in February as his 2009 campaign got off to a sizzling start, said he didn’t play well, but he praised his rival.

“I have no excuses. Juan Martin played better than I did,” Nadal said.

Even so, Nadal said the whole match was a struggle for him.

“I think I played really bad all the time,” Nadal said. “When I was 3-0 in the third I played worse. It was an amazing disaster.”

Nadal said he never felt at home in Miami, even though he arrived fresh from his California triumph.

“I didn’t adapt well to this tournament this time,” he said, adding that he would take a few days off then start his preparations for the claycourt season.

The defeat means Nadal leaves Miami empty-handed again. He has never lifted the trophy here, with runner-up finishes in 2005 and last year his best showings.

Murray, who has been closing in on the world No. 3 spot now occupied by Novak Djokovic, made quick work of Verdasco, who was injured early in the match.

“I had this problem in my gluteals in the second game of the match, and after that, it was tough to keep in the match, to put pressure on him,” said Verdasco, who said he first felt the strain when he was stretching for a shot.

“He’s one of the best players right now. If you’re not 100 per cent, you have no chances to win against him.

“But I don’t like to put excuses for the loss,” he added. “He played better than me and he deserved the victory.”

Murray broke the Spaniard five times and saved seven of eight break points he faced.

“I saw him get a bit frustrated early in the match,” said Murray, who is closing in on the world No. 3 ranking of Novak Djokovic. “I stayed on top of him throughout. Didn’t give him too many chances.

“There was a big game early in the second set when I was down love-40 on my serve. Once I won that, I felt very comfortable,” the Scot added. — AFP


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