Canberra, January 28 (Xinhua) -- Spain's Nadal said after reaching the Australian Open men's singles final for the sixth time in his career on the 28th that he had experienced a difficult moment of "many days of hard work but no light" and never thought that in 2022 there would be another chance to compete for the championship. And this time the opponent of the summit showdown is Medvedev, who is 10 years younger.
On January 28, in the men's singles semifinals of the Australian Open, Spain's Nadal defeated Italy's Berrettini 3-1 to advance to the final. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Bai Xuefei
On the same day, in Melbourne Park in the middle of summer, No. 6 seed Nadal defeated Italy's Berrettini, who reached the final four for the first time, 6:3, 6:2, 3:6, 6:3, and advanced to the final of this year's grand slam again since 2019. That means the Spanish star is just one win away from the "21 Grand Slam Titles" that have created the history of men's tennis.
According to the official statistics of the tournament, at the age of 35, Nadal became the fourth "oldest" male player to reach the final of the Australian Open in the Open era.
In an interview after the game, Nadal, who had been plagued by injuries before, said that it was not easy to get to this point.
"I've been through many challenging moments when even if I've been trying hard for many days, I don't see a single bit of light. But I've been working on it. ”
Nadal played in the men's singles semifinals of the Australian Open on 28 January. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Bai Xuefei
Nadal has reached the Australian Open final five times before, but only lifted the trophy in 2009.
'I've played really well in some finals and had good opportunities, like 2012 against Jokovic, 2017 against Federer, and a couple of times I've been very close. "I'm lucky to win once in 2009, but I never thought I'd have another chance in 2022," he said. Of course, my goal now is to win the final. ”
In another men's singles semi-final that night, last year's Australian Open runner-up and Russian star Medvedev eliminated Greece's No. 4 seed Tsitsipas 7:6 (5), 4:6, 6:4, 6:1, defeating his opponent to advance to the final for the second consecutive year.
On January 28, in the men's singles semifinals of the Australian Open, Russia's Medvedev defeated Greece's Tsitsipas 3-1 to advance to the final. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Bai Xuefei
Medvedev, who won his first grand slam title at last year's US Open, will challenge 20 Grand Slam singles champion Nadal on the 30th.
"Of course I remember the matchup with Rafa (Nadal) in the US Open final (2019), where the ball was played for about five hours and the score was very close." Medvedev, 25, said, "I'm ready, I know he's a very strong player. I need to be in the best shape and try to win the game. ”
Editors: Ding Wenxian, Yu Sihui, Cao Yibo, Yin Shiqi (Intern)