“Playing Rafa is something special”: Hurkacz knocks Nadal out in Rome

Hubert Hurkacz won against Rafael Nadal 6-1, 6-3 on Saturday afternoon. He’ll play Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry, the No 25 seed, in the next round

Hubert Hurkacz in Rome (Inside/Panoramic)

Tennis Majors

May 11, 2024

Internazionali BNL d'Italia •Second round • completed

See draw

H. HurkaczvsR. Nadal

Pole Hubert Hurkacz, the No 7 seed, defeated Spaniard Rafael Nadal 6-1, 6-3 to advance to the third round of the Rome Masters at the Foro Italico in Roma on Saturday.

The first two games of the match took nearly half an hour, and afterwards Hurkacz spoke about how he dealt with that challenge.

“After those long games I got into a pretty good rhythm and thought, ‘I can go like this forever’, and just tried to compete,” he said. “The score looks the way it is but I knew I had to be on the top of my game throughout the whole match, if I dropped just a little bit then he’s going to be right back there.”

Nadal: The scoreline lies a little bit

Nadal agreed that the first-set scoreline was a little deceptive.

A win to remember 👏@HubertHurkacz takes out 10-time champ Nadal in the Spaniards' expected last appearance at the @InteBNLdItalia #IBI24 pic.twitter.com/Z3q6XVsOsj
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 11, 2024

“I think have been a tough one, obviously. It’s obvious that I started well the match. First few games, almost half an hour first two games, having a few chances and playing well. Then I had the break and I lost little bit the way to push him back, the way to create that much on him. In the first set I think the score lie a little bit about what the game was. Then he was much better than me in the second. I don’t have that feeling in the first, but in the second, yeah. I was not able to push him back.

“That’s the case, no? Starts to be more difficult. Here is not the biggest court. He was serving well. It was difficult for me to return. It’s difficult to feel yourself with real chances of come back with his serve and without being able to create enough damage to him and creating mistakes.”

Hurkacz: I wanted to play him so much

It was the first time the two had met, and Hurkacz said afterwards that it was a match he had looked forward to greatly.

“I’m really proud of myself,” Hurkacz said afterwards. “Playing Rafa is something special, it’s just different, especially on clay, the surface that he has dominated over the past 20 years. No-one will ever have a record like him on this surface.”

He added: “Growing up, looking up to him, seeing him win all those titles, here and at the French Open…it was special experience. I wanted to play him so much, especially on clay, just being able to share the court and especially the atmosphere at the beginning of the match, how people really love him and support him throughout his whole career.”

Hurkacz, ranked No 9, will face Argentinian Tomas Martin Etcheverry, the No 25 seed, next.

In the previous round of the Italian Open, Nadal, ranked No 305, edged out Belgian qualifier Zizou Bergs (4-6, 6-3, 6-4).

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