Rafael Nadal defeated Leo Borg, the son of legendary tennis player Bjorn Borg, 6-3, 6-4, in the Swedish Open singles opening round. With this win, Nadal will take on Cameron Norrie of Britain in the second round.
Tennis fans were excited by the pairing of the names of the two greatest men’s clay-court players of the Open era. Having been ranked 461, Leo received a wild card for the Bastad event and played well against his famous opponent, losing 6-3, 6-4.
In an interview, Nadal expressed how he felt: “Great feelings… For me it has been a huge honour to play against the son of one of the biggest legends in the history of our sport… I think he played quite well, he has a future in front of him so I wish him all the very best.”
Nadal’s singles comeback
After losing to Alexander Zverev in the first round of the French Open in May, Rafael Nadal was participating in his first singles encounter since then.
The 38-year-old veteran has been training to be at his peak for the Olympics in Paris later this month and chose to remain on clay rather than take a chance on more injuries by transitioning to grass.
Moreover, Cameron Norrie, ranked second in the United Kingdom and the man who defeated Jozef Kovalik in the opening round, might present a tougher challenge for Rafael Nadal.
Source: Sky Sports