RAFA Nadal showed further signs that he is returning to his best when he overcame Andy Murray by a 6-4, 6-1 scoreline in the Scot's second match at the ATP World Tour Finals. In a match notable for Murray taking the opportunity at the change of ends to give his hair a minor trim, it was the Spaniard who cut the World No 2 down to size. While Nadal is now all but secure of his semi-final place, it means the Scot still requires one more round-robin win in this competition to be secure as the world's second best players by the numbers at the year's end. His next chance will come against Stan Wawrinka here on Friday.
"It was a fortunate day for me - one of my best days of the season without a doubt," said Nadal afterwards. "I think I played well in general. The tactic against Andy is always 'play very well'. He has all the shots so the only way to damage him is to play with high intensity. It is important for me to see these results in competitions after a lot of work."
These two had met 21 times previously on the tour, with Murray winning just five. One of those victories had come in the pair's most recent meeting, a humiliation for the Spaniard on his home clay of Madrid earlier in the season, but the 29-year-old had shown signs recently of returning to his best form after a gradual rehab from the illness and injury which put an early end to his 2014 season and there was more here.
With both men comfortable winners on their opening matches at the o2, Nadal dismissing Wawrinka while Murray had taken care of David Ferrer in straight sets, they knew a place in the semi-finals was well nigh guaranteed for the winner. With the Spaniard serving first, it was the Scot who made the more assured start, breaking to 15 in the very first game match.
But when the 29-year-old Mallorcan broke back immediately to restore parity, it was clear we had a match on our hands. The Scot would require the assistance of a trainer during the first set and at times appeared to be feeling tightness in his quads and hamstrings as it became clear that the Spaniard would extend him to the full. The question was how far he was prepared to go, ahead of next weekend's Davis Cup final.
Nadal played the more aggressive tennis in the remainder of the first set, the Scot saving two break points in a marathon game for 4-4 before finally being broken to love as the Spaniard took the set 6-4. The second set was more one-sided, Murray making too many unforced errors against a confident opponent, and Nadal taking the set 6-1, sealing the deal with one last swipe of that famous topspin forehand of his.
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