Rafael Nadal admitted that he played his best match of the ongoing Wimbledon when he defeated Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego in straight sets by 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 at Center Court on Saturday to advance to the fourth round of the Championships.
Nadal was pushed to four sets in the first two rounds but he came up with a dominant show against the Italian. The Spaniard was ruthless in the first two sets while Sonego did give him some challenge in the third set.
But Nadal wrapped up the whole match in only two hours and four minutes as he brought his best to the table.
“It was probably my best match without a doubt here at The Championships against the most difficult player I have faced yet,” Nadal said in his on-court interview. “I was able to raise my level, so I am super happy for that. I wish Lorenzo all the very best for the rest of the season.”
On the other hand, the match didn’t end without controversy. Sonego first wasn’t happy with the lighting and he asked for the roof to be closed, which did irritate Nadal.
The Spaniard wasn’t pleased with Sonego’s grunting after the point and took the matter into his hand to have a word with his opponent after he was broken in the eighth game. Nadal then had his break back and served out the match but Sonego was not at all happy.
“I made I think a lot of things much better than the previous days: the determination, the way that I managed to play more aggressive, going to the net plenty of times,” Nadal said. “[I am] happy. It’s [a] good victory against a great player. Very happy for that.”
“I feel very lucky that I am still able to play at my age,” Nadal said. “I never thought that was going to happen 10 years ago. So just want to say thanks to all for supporting me.”
Nadal will next face Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp in the Round of 16 on Monday and believes the Dutch will be a tough opponent.
“He’s a player that has been improving unbelievably the last year. [It] was a good challenge in the French and I think he will be more, [difficult here],” Nadal said. “He’s a complete player with a lot of great things, and I need to keep going the way that I played today: playing aggressive and playing with the right energy. Let’s see. He’s a tough opponent, but we are in fourth round. That’s the way that it should be.”
