Rafael Nadal said that he needed to be ‘aggressive’ at certain stages in the Nordea Open 2024 quarterfinal match against Cameron Norrie. On Thursday, Nadal, who is playing in Bastad as a wildcard, defeated his fifth seeded opponent 6-4, 6-4 and made his way through to the semi-final of the clay-court tournament where he will lock horns with Argentina’s Mariano Navone.
Nadal had it easy in the first set against Norrie, but found the going tough in the second. Going 1-4 down in the second, it seemed that the match would go into the deciding set. However, Nadal roared back and won five games in a row to seal the fate of the match in straight sets.
The 37-year-old made his return to competitive tennis since last playing in the opening round of the French Open back in May.
“Great feelings. It’s been a while without playing on tour since Roland Garros. To have the chance to compete well against a great player like Cameron… these are great feelings. I played good tennis for moments. For moments I needed to play more aggressive. That’s part of the journey today,” Nadal said after the match.
Rafael Nadal looking for improvements
With his win over Norrie, Nadal also qualified for the semis of a clay-court event for the first time since the French Open back in 2022.
“I haven’t been competing very often. Matches and victories like today help to be in rhythm the whole match and put the pressure on the opponent during the whole match. That’s something I need to improve today. Because I haven’t played enough,” Nadal added.
Nadal is currently gearing up to play in the Paris Olympics 2024, to be held from July 26. He has also been named in the entry list for the US Open later this year.