Fatigued Nadal falls in Chennai finals in less than an hour

7 January 2008

MADRID – Spanish tennis star Rafa Nadal admitted that he could not overcome his fatigue to be able to put up much of a fight in the Chennai Open final on Sunday, in which Russian Mikhail Youzhny beat the world number two 6-0, 6-1 in less than an hour.

Nadal, who won a marathon four-hour semifinal match over compatriot Carlos Moyà 6-7, 7-6, 7-6 on Saturday, said: "I wasn’t able to bounce back from yesterday’s effort because in less than 24 hours, I had to play again… but I’m happy to have reached the final in my seasonal debut."

The Russian world number 19, who has beaten Nadal in four out of 10 career attempts, admitted Sunday that Spain’s best tennis player was not on his usual strong form. "[Saturday] was like a final. Rafa played a great match against Carlos," he said. "Today Rafa was not quite Rafa."

Nadal, who has had to fight off allegations that a 2005 injury to his foot could be career-threatening, denied that his problem on Sunday was anything more than tiredness. Nadal’s eyes are on the season’s first Grand Slam event, the Australian Open, which starts 14 January. "I’ve begun my season playing very well and I’m confident," he said.

Subject: Spanish news