Rafael Nadal was set to make a brilliant comeback but his comeback was short-lived. He suffered defeat at the hands of Lloyd harris in the round of 16 at the Washington Open. The former world number one player featured in the Washington open after coming out from an injury. He was last seen in the French Open where he was defeated by Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals.
The injury made him withdraw from the Wimbledon 2021 and the Tokyo Olympics 2020. He was out for nearly 2 months and focused on his recovery.
Also read: Washington Open – Rafael Nadal vs Lloyd Harris: Looking at the Stats
How did Rafael perform in the tournament?
Rafael Nadal started with the victory in the round of 32 by defeating Jack Sock of The United States of America. But during that match, he struggled with some pain which clearly reflected his style of play. Rafael Nadal made it to the round of 16 where he faced the South African Lloyd Harris but he fell short as he was unable to make it further in the Washington Open.
The record time Grand slam winner started very slowly and he was defeated in the first set by the South African. But he overcame that and defeated the South African in the second set 2. In the final and decisive set, he was unable to close the match with the victory and make it to the next round. With Rafael struggling from his injury he was not the favorite to advance into the next round and the South African took advantage of this. The final scoreline of the match was 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 in the favour of the South African.
The 35-year-old Spanish player was seen struggling with pace as injury didn’t allow him to run much in the court. But the fans and chanted his name and encouraged him to play the best he can.
Great to see you back on court, @RafaelNadal ????
We hope to see you next year ????#CitiOpen pic.twitter.com/V2X30mcABt
— Citi Open (@CitiOpen) August 6, 2021
What’s next for Rafael Nadal?
With this defeat, Rafael Nadal is now officially out of the Washington open. The US open is also about to start in a month. So he will be mentally prepared to make a good comeback in the upcoming US Open. Though much hard work will be required from him given the fact that he has not touched the rackets for more than three to four weeks.
The rest of the top seed players are coming fresh from big events like Wimbledon and the Tokyo Olympics 2020. It will be interesting to see how the Spanish player performs at the upcoming US Open. We know the level of dedication this player processes.