Rafael Nadal responded to the criticism and claimed he would fight at the ATP Finals in Turin after a first-round defeat that saw the 13-year-old fall short of the Spaniard.
Nadal entered the ATP Finals at the Paris Masters last week after a first-round defeat in Turin looking to turn around his sluggish form.
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Many expected a better performance from the Spaniard who returned to the tour just weeks after the birth of his first child.
But after a close first set against Taylor Fritz, it all went wrong for the 36-year-old.
The American, who defeated Nadal in Indian Wells, ran away with the second set as Nadal looked helpless in key rallies.
He also served three double faults as Fritz comfortably claimed his first Green Group win 7-6, 6-1 in Turin.
Nadal faced criticism after the match we saw the end of the icon’s career with many emotions.
The Spaniard hasn’t lost three matches in a row since 2009 and in his current form could face a tough time in the Green Group.
However, in typical Nadal fashion, the Spaniard said he would: “definitely try.”
Nadal said after the match: “I need more matches to play at this level, even if I practice well, it’s much better than I compete, without a doubt. It’s normal.”
“(It’s) not the ideal tournament and maybe part of the season to come back after a few months without being on tour because you don’t have time to get confidence.
“I still have a chance in this tournament. But of course I’m not happy with the start. The first match was very important for me.”
Taylor Fritz wins the famous ATP Finals
Nadal led 6-5 in the opening set when he held to love for the fifth time but then lost the opening three tiebreaker points and was unable to claw his way back.
After neither player dropped serve in the first set, Fritz broke early in the second to go 3-1 up and 5-1 again before closing out the match in his next service game when Nadal held a forehand sent long
“When I got through that first set, I just wanted to do the same thing I did for the second set: focus on my serve and only look for break points when I got them,” Fritz said.
For Fritz, the win marked the first time in 12 attempts over three opponents and improved to 2-2 in their head-to-head meeting where Nadal defeated him in Indian Wells in March.
The other group match saw Casper Ruud go down to Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6 (7-4), 6-4.
Auger-Aliassime has been in top form at the end of the season, winning three consecutive tournaments before a semi-final run at the Paris Masters, but was not at his best when he entered the World No. 3.
with AAP
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