July 05, (THEWILL) – Rafael Nadal defeated Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4 6-2 7-6(6) to advance into the Wimbledon quarterfinals after a late comeback by the Dutchman.
Van de Zandschulp reached the top 100 last year and was previously ranked 57 in the world. However, his performance in the US Open quarterfinals propelled him to a career-high ranking of 25. And, the 26-year-old Dutchman, who defeated seasoned French pro Richard Gasquet at the weekend, was attempting to advance to the same stage at SW19.
To reach this stage of the competition, Wimbledon’s second seed Nadal defeated the young Italian Lorenzo Sonego, and the Spaniard’s race to add another Grand Slam victory to his record-setting résumé remains on course after Monday’s late game.
The initial parts of the match, which began at 3-3 after 30 minutes of play in somewhat cooler temperatures on Centre Court than during earlier play, showed that the two players were very nearly evenly matched.
Van de Zandschulp’s savage return down the line at that point made it clear to Nadal that he dared not underestimate his younger rival. Nadal took quickly wrapped up the contest, making sure to not give any inch all the way to the final set where he rebuffed van de Zandschulp’s last ditch attempt to force a fourth set.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
