Nadal Sets Querrey Final Clash In Acapulco 2017
Nadal Sets Querrey Final Clash In Acapulco 2017
Mar042017
Britain’s Andy Murray saw off Spaniard Fernando Verdasco in straight sets to win the Dubai Championships for the first time.
The world number one dropped his first two service games but recovered to win 6-3 6-2 in one hour and 14 minutes.
It is Murray’s first tournament win of 2017 and the 45th of his career, which will see him extend his lead over Novak Djokovic at the top of the rankings.
“I’m obviously very happy to do it here for the first time,” said Murray.
“It’s been a good start to the year.”
Murray went into the final with a 12-1 record against Verdasco, but the Scot made a slow start to the final, losing his first two service games and throwing in four double faults.
However, Murray managed to get himself level at 3-3 and was rarely troubled again.
Verdasco, 33, let a 40-0 lead slip in game eight, firing a forehand wide on break point and Murray served out a set in which his returning ability had made up for some erratic serving.
The Briton’s game came together in the second set and a forehand pass gave him the early break for a 2-1 lead.
When Murray ran down a seemingly hopeless point to force another break point at 4-2 it was as good as over for Verdasco, and the top seed ended with the kind of clinical service game he had lacked at the start.
The final proved a far more straightforward contest than his quarter-final against Philipp Kohlschreiber, which saw Murray save seven match points and win an epic 31-minute tie-break.
“Often when you get through matches like that it settles you down for the rest of the tournament,” said Murray.
“It’s been quite a few late finishes this week. Maybe the last couple of matches, I didn’t start as well as I would like. It’s been the same for all the players, a bit tricky with the rain. Once I got going today, I was moving well and I finished strong.”
Any major celebrations will have to wait as Murray heads to the airport and a 16-hour flight to Los Angeles, with the Indian Wells Masters getting under way next week.
Murray, who will play his first match in the Californian desert next weekend, hopes to improve on a relatively modest record of just one final appearance back in 2009.
Last year, he lost in the third round at both Indian Wells and two weeks later at the Miami Masters.
“I struggled at the Indian Wells and Miami last year, I didn’t play so well,” he said. “This year has given me great momentum.”
BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller
Despite dropping his opening two service games, this turned into a straightforward win for Murray.
A first title of 2017 takes Murray over 2,000 points clear of Novak Djokovic at the top of the world rankings, and means he is extremely unlikely to be overtaken by anyone until at least the French Open.
Murray’s form in Dubai this week suggests not only has he got over his bout of shingles, but also that the defeat to Mischa Zverev at the Australian Open is no indication of a deeper malaise.
Spaniard to play Kyrgios or Querrey
Second seed Rafael Nadal wasted no time getting down to business on Friday at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel, recording a convincing 6-1, 6-2 win over third seed Marin Cilic to reach the final in Acapulco.
Nadal remains undefeated at this event, improving to 14-0 and winning all 28 sets he has played. Both of his previous Acapulco titles, in 2005 and 2013, came on red clay. Nadal also boosts his FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Cilic to 4-1 and has won their past four matches.
The Spaniard will face either sixth seed Nick Kyrgios or Sam Querrey in Saturday’s final. Nadal is even with Kyrgios in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series at 1-1, but won their most recent meeting last May at the Internazionali BNL D’Italia. Nadal has dominated his FedEx ATP Head2Head series with Querrey 4-0, including a win last May at the Mutua Madrid Open. A win would gave Nadal his first hard-court title since the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in January 2014.
Cilic was uncharacteristically out of sorts in the opening set, hitting 15 errors in the first five games as Nadal raced to a 5-0 lead. A pair of aces put the third seed on the scoreboard, but it was only a moral victory as the Spaniard held in the next game to grab the early advantage.
The second set started out identically to the first as Nadal immediately grabbed an early break to lead 2-0. Although Cilic began to find his footing and test Nadal’s serve, the Spaniard saved all four break points in the second set with clutch serving. A backhand passing shot on the run gave Nadal an insurance break to lead 5-2 and he struck a forehand winner on his first match point to advance in one hour and 23 minutes.
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Second seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas returned to the Brasil Open semi-finals on Friday with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 victory against Argentine Guido Pella. Ramos-Vinolas won 75 per cent of his first-serve points and broke twice in the third set to clinch the last-eight match-up.
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The left-hander, who also reached the last four in Sao Paulo in 2012, will meet fourth seed Joao Sousa in the semi-finals on Saturday. Sousa advanced past seventh seed and 2014 champion Federico Delbonis 6-3, 6-1 in 59 minutes.
The Portuguese right-hander lost only eight points on his serve (32/40), won all four break points and never faced a break point. Sousa now leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head series against Delbonis 3-2.