Nadal won a total of five games during a straight-set loss to Nuno Borges in the Bastad final.
Rafael Nadal maybe fell short in his bid to win his first title since the 2022 French Open but that didn’t stop him from issuing a very classy message hours after the Bastad final and recognizing Nuno Borges’s big day.
On Sunday, 38-year-old Nadal played his first final since returning from hip surgery. But unfortunately for Nadal and his fans, his deep Bastad run didn’t end with the title after 27-year-old Borges upset the former world No. 1 6-3 6-2 to win his first ATP title.
After giving Borges credit on the court and congratulating him on becoming an ATP champion, Nadal took some time to reflect on his week in Bastad and there was something he wanted to share with his fans.
“Congratulations to Nuno for his first ATP Tour title. Very well deserved and a special moment for him. All the best for the rest of the year and the career that as he said it’s worth to pursue now more than ever. It was great to be in a final again. It was great to be back in Båstad,” Nadal wrote on Instagram.
Shortly after Nadal posted this message on Instagram, Borges responded in the comment section: “Pleasure to share the court with you.”
Nadal didn’t have the strength for another win
After spending over six hours on the court during his quarterfinal and semifinal matches, Nadal definitely didn’t look fresh when he hit the court for a third consecutive day.
Early on in the final, Nadal was twice down by a break but twice recovered. However, Nadal’s woes continued and after Borges broke the Spaniard again for a 4-2 lead, this time the Portuguese held on to his serve for the rest of the set to clinch the opener.
After losing the first set, Nadal was on the verge of falling down by an early second-set break but managed to save a break point in the first game before going 2-1 up through the first three games.
But Borges remained unfazed – kept pressing Nadal – and still routinely won the second set after claiming back-to-back breaks and winning the last five games of the match to complete his win in a very impressive way.
Nadal will now turn his focus to the Paris Olympics, which start on July 26th.