By Kingsley Elliot Kaye
The most dreaded ending for a tennis match is a withdrawal owing to injury.
We watched, heartbroken, aghast, Zverev hopper up in crutches to the umpire and then tearfully embrace Nadal.
Ten minutes earlier, lugging to hit a forehand winner down the line, Zverev had stumbled and his ankle was anchored in the clay for a fatal instant, and ruinously twisted to follow his falling body. It was the twelfth game of the second set, which seemed to be heading, as the former, towards a tiebreak.
It had been a spectacular match, crammed with emotions, remarkable shots. One of those matches you wish could go on forever, deserving not to be refrained by any super tiebreak.
It was the match in which Zverev showed the world he had found an inner equilibrium. Not eradicating his doubts, his anxiety, his sudden failings, but able to accept them without falling into despair, to leave them behind and resume his towering game time after time.
“It’s not easy to talk after what happened. The only thing that I can say is I hope he’s not too bad. Hopefully nothing is broken,” said Nadal. “It has been a very, very tough match. I think he started the match playing amazing. I know how much means to him, fight to win his first Grand Slam. For me it’s a dream to be in the final of Roland Garros, of course that way is not the way that we want it to be.”
THE MATCH
The closed roof resulting in lower bounce was believed to be detrimental to Nadal. His shots would be numbed, and more easily aggressed.
Indeed Zverev proved, from the very first game, to have the power to hit through Nadal’s defence. He broke immediately, then strode off with excellent serving and winners of both groundstrokes.
In the early stages Zverev was positioned closer to the line than usual, while Nadal seemed to be moving less sharply. Zverev was alternating lifted balls and heavy strikes, whereas Nadal was hitting short and his spin appeared muffled.
Nadal struggled on his second game on serve, his shots landing too short, and was 15-30 after the German drilled a backhand crosscourt. But two netted returns allowed the Spaniard to keep up.
At 4-2 Zverev stats were thriving: 95% of first serves in 6 games and 11 winners. A first lapse occurred in the eighth game at 40-30 Zverev squandered the chance to rise 5-3 by spraying a long forehand, then doublefaulted, hauling a second serve over speed limits, 209 kph, and conceded a breakpoint. He saved it by winning a 20-shot rally in which he was always putting pressure and Nadal finally netted a forehand. Incredibly Zverev mishit an easy forehand on the next point just a couple of feet from the net, so badly that his racquet flew out of his hands. The second break point was fatal: Zverev missed a comfortable crosscourt backhand after an excellent first serve and Nadal caught up and shortly overtook holding serve.
At 5-4 a netted forehand by Zverev meant set point for Nadal. But the German effaced it with a proficient serve. The game turned into a battle, and Zverev faced two other setpoints before holding with a low dropshot volley.
In the eleventh game Nadal went 0-30 down but surfaced with two dropshots. Zverev still got a breakpoint with an angled crosscourt backhand and Nadal saved with serve and volley, his most celebrated tactic in crucial moments. And he deployed the same scheme to save a second break point. He was clearly flaring up. He eventually held and so did Zverev; 6-6 and tiebreak.
Zverev gifted a minibreak missing an easy open court forehand but Nadal netted his own forehand immediately after and returned the favour.
Zverev got a second minibreak with a forehand passing shot on a slightly tentative foray to the net by the Spaniard, determined to mix it up.
A crosscourt forehand acceleration after a baseline rally and Zverev led 4-2, then 5-2 thanks to an angled crosscourt backhand after a 205 kph first serve.
He earned a second minibreak accelerating with his forehand and had a 4-setpoint portfolio at 6-2.
Nadal erased the first with an ace. Zverev missed an easy backhand volley on the second.
A crosscourt passing forehand down the line on the run by Nadal elated the crowd and obliterated the third, whereas after running side to side for the whole point he scrambled to save the fourth, forcing Zverev to play and miss a tough high backhand volley on the stretch.
Nadal conquered his first set point with a forehand down the line.
Zverev saved it placing a backhand on the line. But then dumped a backhand in the net. This time Nadal had set point on serve, but his backhand flew out long.
A drop shot brough up a third set point. After a first serve had opened the court up Zverev recklessly hit a forehand again to Nadal’s forehand and was passed. 10-8 and 1 hour and 31 minutes of rollercoaster battle.
The second set opened up with Nadal enticing Zverev to the net with a dropshot, then passing him. A second dropshot earned him 0-30. Two unforced errors by Zverev offered him an immediate break.
When his was up 40-15 on serve, the match seemed about to take a crucial and perhaps decisive turn. But surprisingly Nadal tightened up and lost serve.
Zverev was now struggling to finish off points as effectively as in the first set. And Nadal was constantly thrusting in that extra shot. Unforced errors by the German yielded two break points and Nadal converted the second when Zverev overhit a crosscourt passing backhand after an extenuating breath-catching 44-shot rally.
Zverev could have paid toll but Nadal hit three unforced errors and immediately returned the break.
Zverev saved a break point in his next service game with a winning crosscourt backhand. With some struggle he nosed ahead 3-2. His effort was rewarded because a blasting crosscourt forehand won him another break.
Nadal immediately fought back and grabbed a break point by hitting two lobs over Zverev after trapping him at the net with dropshots. A double fault followed and surrendered the break.
Zverev was unshattered and responded to Nadal’s raid at the net by leaping into the stands to hit a lob. Nadal missed the smash and conceded a break point. He ended up losing service a second tima
Zverev served for the set at 5-3 up but was grounded by three double faults and lost his lead.
Nadal was getting more and more aggressive, also because Zverev was striking with less power. In the tenth game when Nadal soared to 0-30 hitting a crosscourt forehand winner on the run, sprinting down the whole baseline, it could have been the final blow. Zverev responded again by firing a backhand down the line. And followed it up to hold.
Nadal served to reach a second tiebreak. He climbed to 40-15. He came to the net but was passed by a crosscourt forehand. The score was 40-30. The clock read 3 hours and 3 minutes.
Then it happened.
