Nadal’s long night in City of Light
He battles until nearly 1: 30 to earn a rematch with Schwartzman in French Open semis.
Rafael Nadal withstood an early challenge from 19year- old Jannik Sinner and pulled away to win 7- 6 ( 4), 6- 4, 6- 1 in a quarterfinal that ended at nearly 1: 30 a. m. on Wednesday on a windy night with the temperature in the low 50s.
Competition can continue that deep into the night in Paris this year because it’s the first time artificial lights are being used for play at the clay- court Grand Slam tournament.
“Of course it’s not ideal [ to] f inish a match at 1: 30 in the morning. But the problem is the weather. It’s too cold to play. Honestly, it’s very, very cold to play tennis, no?” Nadal said, calling it a “little bit dangerous for the body.”
Their quarterfinal began after 10: 30 p. m, the last match of a packed Tuesday at Court Philippe Chatrier, which included five contests instead of the usual four because one was postponed by rain a day earlier. And Nadal- Sinner also was delayed by No. 12 seed Diego Schwartzman’s f ive- hour, f ive- set victory over No. 3 Dominic Thiem.
“I really don’t know why they put f ive matches on Chatrier today,” Nadal said. “That was a risk.”
No. 2 Nadal hasn’t lost a set in the tournament and will take a 9- 1 head- to- head edge against Schwartzman into their meeting in Friday’s semifinals.
“Two days to practice, to
rest a little bit and to recover, and just try to be ready,” Nadal said.
Schwartzman has this going for him: He won their most recent matchup, beating Nadal last month on clay at a tuneup in Rome.
“I’m not sure if I’m going to have a lot of confidence,” Schwartzman said, “but, yeah, I know that I can beat him. That’s important.”
Nadal is trying to win a 13th French Open title and 20th Grand Slam trophy, which would equal Roger Federer’s mark for men.
Among the many statistics that stand out about Nadal’s track record in Paris: He is 98- 2 at the place, which includes 24- 0 in semifinals and finals.
Consider this: Nadal turned pro in 2001, the year Sinner was born. Nadal made his French Open debut in 2005, turned 19 during the tournament, beat Federer in the semifinals and won the trophy.
For the 75th- ranked Sinner, this was his f irst Grand Slam quarterfinal.
“I had chances in the first set. I had chances in the second set. I didn’t use them,” Sinner said.