IT was far from his most dominant Barcelona Open win – facing a championship point and needing three sets to finally lift the trophy – but Rafael Nadal proved too strong for Stefanos Tsitsipas, getting across the line in an epic three hours and 38 minutes. The 6-4 6-7 7-5 was the longest best-of-three ATP Tour final in existence since time started being tracked 30 years ago. For Nadal, it was his twelfth Barcelona Open title and in doing so, took back the world number two spot from Daniil Medvedev.

“I think I never played a final like this in this tournament, so it means a lot to me against a player like him, [after what] he achieved in Monte-Carlo and [that he reached] the final here without losing a set,” Nadal said post-match. “It is an important victory for me. I think I have been increasing my level during the whole week and this victory confirms it. That’s important for today. “To have the trophy with me here at home means a lot, but at the same time for the future.”

Nadal actually had the chance to close out the match in straight sets, winning the opening set and holding two championship points in the tenth game, only for the Greek talent to rally, force a tiebreaker, win said tiebreaker and then battle it out in the deciding set. The win meant Nadal claimed his 61st ATP Tour title, of which 13 have come from Roland Garros, 12 from Barcelona, 11 from Monte Carlo and nine in Rome (all clay court events).

Prior to the match, Tsitsipas was yet to drop a match on clay, having won all nine matches and not even dropping a set. Nadal understood just how big of a challenge his opponent was, and how he had to dig deep to retain the title, having lost to Tsitsipas in the quarter finals at the Australian Open after being two sets up.

“It’s about accepting the challenge,” Nadal said. “It is about being humble enough to accept that sometimes you are not playing that well and you need to fight for it and you need to try to find solutions every day. That’s what I did.”

There were a massive 242 points played through the epic contest, with just four more points going the way of the top seeded Spaniard, indicating just how even the match was. Nadal broke four times from 12 chances, which was two more than Tsitsipas who had 13 opportunities. With a 55 per cent second serve success rate, Nadal was well ahead of Tsitsipas (43 per cent) to make up for a marginally lower first serve success rate (69 to 74 per cent).

Meanwhile in Serbia, Matteo Berrettini ended the run of third seed Aslan Karatsev, with the Russian fresh off a massive win over world number one Novak Djokovic. The Italian has struggled the last couple of years since winning Stuttgart back in 2019, Berrettini claimed a three-set win, 6-1 3-6 7-6 in two hours and 30 minutes. It all looked to be going swimmingly early, but then Karatsev rallied in the second set to force a decider, which went all the way to the tiebreak. There, the Italian showed no mercy, winning all seven points to stroll to victory after a tough battle.

For Berrettini, it was a special moment, marking the first time his family members had see him win an ATP Tour title – the fourth of his career – live, when the make the trip to the Novak Tennis Centre. They saw their son put up 10 aces and take control when it counted to claim the win.

“It was something that I really wanted to happen, because my dad came once in Munich when I lost the final (l. Garin). And my mom has never come for a final,” Berrettini said post-match. “So I was like, okay this is the right moment. And I think with a match like this it’s going to stick in our minds forever. It’s something special.

“I remember this same kind of match, 7-6 in the third, in the finals of an Under-16 in Germany. And it’s crazy, because in the end it’s the same feeling. I was a kid and now I’m a pro, but it’s the same feeling. They [have] supported me since the day I was born, so it’s a great honour to bring them to these kinds of stages.”

BARCELONA OPEN FINAL:

[1] Rafael Nadal (ESP) defeated [2] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) 6-4 6-7 7-5

SERBIA OPEN FINAL:

[2] Matteo Berrettini (ITA) defeated [3] Aslan Karatsev (RUS) 6-1 3-6 7-6

Picture credit: Alex Caparros/Getty Images