Nadal beaten again but Spanish superstar says Mubadala ‘goal is achieved’

After
a
hard-fought
battle
with
Andy
Murray
on
Friday
served
up
a
reminder
of
many
a
classic
match
between
the
pair,
it
was
Denis
Shapovalov
who
beat
Nadal
in
his
second
comeback
clash.

Since
losing
to
Novak
Djokovic
in
the
French
Open
semi-finals
in
June,
Nadal
had
played
only
two
matches
due
to
a
worrying
foot
injury.

That
has
been
a
long-term
problem
and
the
35-year-old
Spaniard
chose
this
week’s
event
to
test
how
it
would
stand
up
to
match
conditions.

Canadian
Shapovalov
beat
his
fellow
left-hander
6-7
(4-7)
6-3
10-6,
but
Nadal
has
done
enough
in
his
two
matches,
and
in
a
practice
session
with
Andrey
Rublev,
to
be
persuaded
his
prospects
for
2022
are
looking
up,
with
the
Australian
Open
just
a
month
away.

The
20-time
grand
slam
champion
said:
“Maybe
it
was
too
tough
to
start
after
a
long
time.”

But
he
was
laughing
as
he
said
that,
and
added:
“The
goal
is
achieved:
to
be
back
on
court.
I’ve
played
two
matches
and
played
more
or
less
four
hours
on
court.

“I
enjoyed
it.
Congrats
to
Denis
today.
I
wish
you
all
the
very
best
for
the
next
season,
and
I’m
going
to
try
to
keep
going
with
my
road.”

—
Mubadala
World
Tennis
Championship
(@MubadalaWTC)

December
18,
2021

Nadal
said
he
would
return
to
the
tournament
in
future
years,
as
long
as
he
remains
fit
and
still
on
tour.

“If
I’m
still
playing
tennis,
I
am
always
super
happy
to
be
here
playing,”
he
said.
“Hopefully
I
can
keep
coming
during
the
next
couple
of
years.”

Shapovalov,
22,
is
one
of
the
ATP
Tour’s
most
talented
youngsters,
striving
to
make
a
telling
impact
while
the
likes
of
Nadal,
Novak
Djokovic
and
Murray
reach
the
twilight
years
of
their
careers.

He
said
of
Saturday’s
win
over
Nadal:
“Any
time
I
get
to
go
on
court
against
a
guy
like
Rafa
is
an
honour
for
me.

“It’s
great
to
just
see
you
back
on
the
court
and
see
you
healthy.
Hopefully
you
can
grab
a
great
season
and
keep
going.”