Next Generation star Stefano Tsitsipas will get better with time, according to world No.1 Rafael Nadal.
The two players met on the tour for the first time on Sunday in the final of the Barcelona Open. Top seed Nadal strolled to a 6-2, 6-1, win in just under 80 minutes to clinch the trophy for the 11th time in his career. Despite the one-sided performance from the Spaniard, he believes that his 19-year-old opponent has the ability to become a star in the future.
“He is a fantastic player who only lacks the normal process of maturity for someone his age.” Nadal said during his press conference.
Nadal’s praise for the youngster is warranted. Tsitsipas defeated four seeded players to reach his maiden ATP final, including Dominic Thiem and Pablo Carreno Busta. He is the first player from his country to contest a tour final since Nicholas Kalogeropoulos back in 1973. An impressive achievement for a player who had only ever won one tour match on the clay prior to Barcelona.
“I knew the chances to win were small, but my confidence was rising in every match and while I was expecting a little better today, congratulations to Rafa,” Tsitsipas commented about his latest performance. “It was a first experience and tougher than I thought. I’ve watched him millions of times on TV, but it’s tougher to face him in reality.”
One area of Nadal’s game that caught the attention of Tsitsipas was his forehand. Six out of his nine winners in the final came from the forehand side.
Tsitsipas: “Nadal FH is one of the strongest on tour. I had never seen a FH so powerful & with so much energy as his. He’s been very superior in every sense” https://t.co/5IWal7rGYd
— Genny SS (@genny_ss) 29 April 2018
Set to rise to a career best of 44th in the world, the Greek player continues to focus on the positives as he continues his surge on the tour. Despite his young age, he is already the highest ranked player from his country of all time. Something he hopes to improve further as he continues to learn on the tour.
“You need to be patient and do everything right, but I was in a rush and had a mess in my head. I was trying to go for the lines, which was the wrong thing. I had no options. He didn’t give me any air to breathe out there. It’s something to learn from for sure and I hope to do better against him (Nadal) in the future.” He concluded.
Tsitsipas exits Barcelona with €245,940 in prize money.
