Spain's Rafael Nadal returns the ball during a match against Andrey Kuznetsov of Russia at Qatar Open tennis tournament in Doha, Qatar.
Doha - A relieved Nadal pumped his fist as he won, showing how much the victory meant to him.
Published: Thu 7 Jan 2016, 11:00 PM
Updated: Sat 9 Jan 2016, 9:12 AM
A pumped-up Rafael Nadal qualified for the semifinals of the Qatar Open on Thursday, battling to a three-set victory over Andrey Kuznetsov in the match of the tournament so far.
Nadal won 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in just over two hours and was made to work for his victory by the Russian, ranked number 79 in the world, in a contest which delighted the centre court crowd in Doha. A relieved Nadal pumped his fist as he won, showing how much the victory meant to him.
"I am very happy to be through, he was playing great," said Nadal immediately afterwards. The Spaniard, looking to recapture the form that has made him a 14-time Grand Slam winner, won the first set comfortably enough but from there the real drama started.
Despite initially being a break up, Nadal lost a see-saw second set as Kuznetsov's powerful forehands brought him back into the match. The Russian eventually took it 7-5, the first time the 24-year-old had ever taken a set from Nadal. In their only previous meeting, Nadal, 29, won in three sets at the French Open last year.
World number one Novak Djokovic was scheduled to play later on Thursday.
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