For a player who has won 22 Grand Slam tournaments like Rafael Nadal, the title at an ATP 250 level tournament like the Swedish Open is certainly too small. However, at the present time, it has a different, big enough meaning.
Nadal is 38 years old and is in the final days of his career after a long period of injury. Therefore, any additional title that appears in the title collection is meaningful to Rafa.
Moreover, the 2024 Swedish Open championship will be a great preparation for Nadal before heading to the 2024 Olympics.
Perhaps not everyone who is a passionate fan of Nadal remembers that the Spanish legend won the tournament in Sweden in 2005. At that time, only 19 years old, Nadal came from behind to win against Tomas. Berdych 2-6, 6-2, 6-4.
This year, Nadal reached the final after coming from behind against young player Duje Ajdukovic and most likely, he will need to do so again if he wants to win. Borges is 11 years younger than Nadal.
But, there is reason for Nadal to believe he will overcome, because on his journey to the final, he eliminated seeds like Cameron Norrie (5) and Mariano Navone (4).
On the contrary, the Portuguese player entered the final without having to meet a single seed. The competitors - Andrea Pellegrino, Henrique Rocha, Timofey Skatov and Thiago Agustin Tirante, are ranked 153, 182, 253 and 121 in the world, respectively.
Nadal is tired, of course, but he also understands that this is the time to "exhaust the tank" in the final match at Bastad before having a week off before the 2024 Olympics .
Link to watch the Nadal vs Borges match live at 7:00 p.m. on July 21
https://www.vtvcab.vn/channel/on-sports-news-1,VTVcab18_HD.html
