Rafael Nadal Returns to Barcelona: Reflecting on His First Title 20 Years Ago

Emmanuel LANGELLIER, Media365: published on Monday April 15, 2024 at 8:26 p.m.

Returning to Barcelona on Tuesday, Rafael Nadal won the first title of his fabulous career 20 years ago, in 2004.

Phew, so he will be back on the circuit this Tuesday. After a long time of uncertainty, and even worry, Rafael Nadal will make his comeback on Tuesday at the Barcelona tournament which he greatly appreciates. A month and a half before Roland-Garros, the 37-year-old Spanish player, disturbed by physical problems for many months, will finally play again on clay. The surface on which he began building his legend some time ago… Almost 20 years to be exact. On August 15, 2004, the man who would be nicknamed “the Bull of Manacor” won his first tournament in Sopot.

Di Pasquale “remembers a devastating forehand, a kind of bulldozer”

Aged 18 at the time, Rafael Nadal triumphed by lifting his first trophy in the skies of the Polish seaside resort. The first of his 92 titles… Five months after surprising Roger Federer in Miami, the Spaniard is now 71st in the ATP rankings. He arrives in Sopot after having had to give up the season on ocher due to an ankle injury. Before playing the US Open, the left-hander takes out Victor Hanescu (6-4, 6-4), 88th in the world, for his entry into the running. Then Nadal takes on Frenchman Arnaud Di Pasquale (272nd) in two sets (6-2, 6-4). “I was warned a little, they told me: ‘Be careful, you’ll see, you’re playing a young man who’s a wreck.’ Then there is what happened on the pitch, remembered the French player. I remember a devastating forehand, a kind of bulldozer. I had rarely, if ever, had someone in front of me make me flinch with each of their strikes. The weight, the heaviness, the bounce of the ball… Every time he hit the ball with a forehand, I felt like I was taking an uppercut and going backwards. »

5 victories in 2 sets

The future winner of 14 Roland-Garros and 22 Grand Slam tournaments then dominated Franco Squillari (154th, 6-3, 6-4) and Félix Mantilla (110th, 7-5, 6-1), former very good players . In the final, Nadal faces José Acasuso. Here again, the Majorcan won in two sets (6-3, 6-4) against the 105th player in the world who, however, gave him a hard time. The future best clay court player in the history of the little yellow ball had to put aside 11 break points before taking the measure of the Argentinian. Nadal then won the first of his 63 titles on clay.

2024-04-15 18:26:00
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