Rafael Nadal competed in Toronto for the first time in eight years in 2018. The Spaniard entered the draw as the top seed and scored five victories to secure his fourth Canada Masters crown, the first since 2013. Nadal met the young gun Stefanos Tsitsipas in the title clash and provided a 6-2, 7-6 victory.
The Greek beat four top-10 players to reach the title clash, becoming the youngest Masters 1000 finalist since Novak Djokovic in Miami 2007 and facing Rafa on his 20th birthday! Nadal was unwilling to give Stefanos a birthday gift.
The Spaniard scored his 40th win from 43 matches that year and earned a massive milestone. Rafa became the fourth player in the Open era with 80 ATP titles, joining Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Roger Federer! Tsitsipas fended off a match point against Alexander Zverev and Kevin Anderson to set Rafael Nadal clash, the second in the finals after Barcelona earlier that year.
The Greek pulled the break back in the second set and earned a set point in the 12th game.Rafa lost the ground a bit in those moments but denied it before sealing the deal in the tie break and avoiding a decider. The Spaniard clinched the breaker 7-4 for his 19th ATP title on hard and the first since the US Open 2017.
It was a marvelous performance from Nadal until 6-2, 5-4, sailing through his service games and dominating with his forehand to have the upper hand from the baseline. Rafa finished the match with 27 winners and 20 unforced errors despite that shaky period in the closing stages.
At the same time, Tsitsipas hit 15 direct points and 25 mistakes. Nothing could separate them in the shortest points up to four strokes. Rafa created the crucial gap in the more challenging rallies from five to eight strokes and those that reached the ninth shot.
Nadal used his experience and made a flying start against the first-time Masters 1000 finalist. The Spaniard dominated his service games and used his opportunities on the return to take the opener 6-2 in just 34 minutes.
Rafael Nadal beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final in Toronto 2018.
Rafa lost just one point in four service games.
At the same time, Stefanos was far from that pace, serving under 50% and getting broken two times. The Spaniard drew first blood in game three, converting the third break point for an early lead. The Greek sprayed a forehand error in the fifth game and sent his opponent 4-1 in front after 22 minutes.
An outstanding forehand winner pushed Nadal 5-1 up, and the opening set was in his hands after another hold at love in game eight. Rafa broke the youngster in the second set’s first game. They both played well behind the initial shot in the following eight games, leaving Nadal to serve for the title at 5-4.Stefanos raised his level in comparison to the opening set.
He was there to challenge Rafa with aggressive and well-balanced tennis, which brought him a place in the final. The problem was he won just three points on the return since the start of the match, and no one could expect much from him in that tenth game either.
Suddenly, Rafa lost momentum and got broken at 30, missing a chance to seal the deal and having to save a set point at 5-6! The Spaniard erased it after a lucky net cord to set up a tie break where he was the clear favorite.
Tsitsipas had an early mini-break, but Nadal eliminated the deficit after the Greek’s huge forehand error in the fourth point. A service winner moved Rafa 4-3 up before earning a crucial mini-break when Stefanos netted a forehand.
