Tennis player Rafael Nadal beat Gael Monfils 7-5, 5–7, 6–0, to win his ninth Monte-Carlo Masters title yesterday. Nadal, who is ranked world number five in men's tennis, last won the title in 2012 and has now claimed the 68th singles title of his career.

Nadal won the first set 7–5 in 73 minutes, breaking early in the set to grab a 3–1 lead. Monfils fought back in the second set winning 7–5 after breaking Nadal's serve 3 times. During the match 29-year-old Spaniard Nadal hit 25 winners. Completing the third set 6–0, Nadal denied Monfils the chance to win the title for what would have been the first time in his career.

The match was completed in two hours 45 minutes. After the match, Nadal said, "Well I think it's amazing, no, it's a tournament really that I love so much, it's so special for me. I won the first one here, and a couple of times I was struggling a little bit and I came back here and played well, so this victory means a lot to me and I am so happy for everything. I hope to, to that victory helps me a lot for the next couple of tournaments, but anyway winning here in Monte Carlo for the ninth time is something, just, unbelievable."

This was Nadal's first title in 2016.


Sources




Source & Attribution

Originally published by Wikinews on April 18, 2016. Original author: Wikinews.

CC BY 2.5. Photograph: File photo of Rafael Nadal, 2015.
Image: Tourism Victoria (flickr). Photo: Tourism Victoria from Australia Australian Open Players' Party Source file. CC BY 2.0. CC BY 2.0.

Disclaimer

This article retains its original publication date. Subsequent corrections and updates supplied by the source are retained when available. Thames Weekly is not affiliated with or endorsed by the original publisher unless expressly stated. Text and photographs remain credited to their respective creators.