Wimbledon 2022: 3 things that will determine the outcome of Rafael Nadal's SF clash with Nick Kyrgios
Second seed Rafael Nadal of Spain will face Nick Kyrgios of Australia in the semifinals of the Wimbledon Championships on Friday. The 36-year-old is eyeing his third Grand Slam title of the year and if his abdominal injury isn't a concern, he could start as the favorite on Friday.
However, the 27-year-old Australian, who upset Nadal at Wimbledon in 2014, is looking more rejuvenated and is in red-hot form at SW19 this year.
While Nadal had to overcome Taylor Fritz of the USA in the quarterfinals in a five-set thriller, Kyrgios beat Christian Garin of Chile in straight sets to sail into the last four. Still, the Spaniard will fancy his chances of making it to his fifth Wimbledon final.
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On that note, let's take a look at three factors that might determine the outcome of the match:
#1 Kyrgios’ ability to win easy points with his explosive serve and style of play
Kyrgios is known to have one of the most potent serves in world tennis and will look to win a number of easy points through it. Kyrgios had 178 winners -the highest in the tournament-at the end of the first week at this year’s Wimbledon and also fired 17 aces against Garin.
He will look to win points with his blistering one-two punches against Nadal as well. His powerful serve and forehand are usually more effective on grass and Nadal would have to counter that with his exceptional defensive skills.
Nadal faced a similar challenge against Fritz, who used his one-two punch very effectively against the Spaniard in the quarterfinals. If Kyrgios is to win on Friday, he will have to have a healthy first-serve ratio as Nadal will try to put pressure on the Australian’s second serve to get an elusive break.
#2 Rafael Nadal peppering Kyrgios’ backhand with his crosscourt forehand:
Rafael Nadal will try to put pressure on Kyrgios’ backhand from the outset with a crosscourt forehand, his bread and butter shot. Kyrgios’ backhand is weaker than his forehand and he will not enjoy having the ball frequently on his weaker side.
Nadal often played his crosscourt forehand with a sharp angle against Fritz to push him into the far corner of the court and then hit a down-the-line forehand winner to finish the point. He is likely to repeat that tactic against Kyrgios and avoid directing too much traffic towards the Australian’s forehand.
Kyrgios does have a consistent two-handed backhand but will likely have to use it defensively given the strength of Nadal's forehand. However, if he manages to flatten his backhand more than usual and get the ball across the court, the Australian could try to shift the dynamic of the point and win them with his forehand.
#3 Rafael Nadal taking the pace off the ball with slices and drop shots:
Nadal frequently played a backhand slice against Fritz to take the pace off the ball and give himself enough time to reorganize in between the shots. However, the execution of the shot was faulty at times as he hit a slice into the net at times. Still, that might be an interesting tactic, which he could apply against Kyrgios.
Moreover, Rafael Nadal’s ability to play drop shots might also trouble Kyrgios on Friday. The Spaniard played his drop shots to great effect against Fritz from the fourth set onwards. He might use it frequently against Kyrgios too, as the Australian would not enjoy being dragged into the net repeatedly.