Murray wins 4th Queen's Club title

Tennis Updates:

Andy Murray joined the likes of John McEnroe and Boris Becker as a four-time Queen’s Club champion with an impressive victory over Kevin Anderson. The British number one played superbly to win 6-3 6-4 in just 64 minutes at the Aegon Championships in London.

Murray, the top seed, had earlier finished a rain-delayed semi-final, beating Viktor Troicki 6-3 7-6 (7-4).

“I played better as the week went on and hopefully I can continue that into Wimbledon,” the 28-year-old said.

“I tried to play each point and come up with some great shots. I had to play that way if I wanted to win today.”

The Scot also won the title in 2009, 2011 and 2013, and he will hope to repeat his effort of two years ago when he went on to make it a grass-court double at Wimbledon.

“It’s great preparation obviously, but I think it has only happened six times where someone has won Queen’s and gone on to win Wimbledon,” Murray added.

“There are no guarantees that winning here gives you a Wimbledon title.”

He can head to the All England Club in confident mood after dismantling the big-serving game of 6ft 8in Anderson.

Having resumed his semi-final against Troicki at 11:00 BST with the score at 3-3, the Briton wrapped that match up in a clinical 65 minutes and returned two hours later to face Anderson.

The South African, ranked 17th, had looked impregnable on serve as he made it through the draw but he found Murray’s returns just too testing.

Anderson made 78% of his first serves in the opening set but even that was not enough as Murray broke in game four, a brilliant backhand winner setting up the chance before Anderson netted a volley.

A forehand winner made it 4-1 after just 17 minutes, and a ferociously focused Murray pumped his fist before heading to his chair.

There was simply no let-up as he closed out the first set and proved similarly clinical when his chance arose in the second.

“I need to train well the next five, six days, prepare as well as I can,” said Murray. “It gives me that little bit of confidence going in there.

“It’s been a really good start, but it’s a long way to go before Wimbledon even starts, and then all sorts of things can happen during Slams.”

by ScoresPro.com

Murray wins 4th Queen's Club title

Queen's Club: Murray's semi-final delayed until Sunday

Tennis Updates:

Andy Murray will have to play twice in one day if he is to win a fourth Queen’s Club title after his semi-final was suspended because of rain. The top seed and Serbia’s Viktor Troicki were tied at 3-3 at the Aegon Championships, with the winner to play South African Kevin Anderson.

Murray and Troicki will resume at 11:00 BST, and the final is scheduled to get under way at 14:25 at the earliest.

The weather forecast suggests a clear day in west London on Sunday.

Murray will hope to pick up where he left off against Troicki, having earned his sixth break point of a dramatic seventh game when the weather intervened.

Troicki was being treated for a shoulder injury at the time following a heavy fall.

The world number 25 had returned to the court and was preparing to try and fend off another break point when the rainfall became too heavy to continue.

Murray, 28, has recent experience of playing twice in a day, having beaten Lukas Rosol and Roberto Bautista Agut on the Munich clay last month.

The delay would appear to favour Anderson, the 6ft 8in world number 17 who has racked up 96 aces and dropped serve just once on his way to the final.

Anderson, 29, beat France’s Gilles Simon 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 in Saturday’s first semi-final and must wait to learn his final opponent.

“Just for me it’s a little strange not knowing who you’re playing still and waiting around, but I can’t really let that affect my preparations,” he said.

“I will sort of treat it like a normal match.”

He added: “It’s going to be a big match. I’m really looking forward to it. It’s a tournament I remember watching at a very young age.

“I didn’t really understand how the tour worked. Everybody knew Queen’s, though, the week before Wimbledon and you had the best players in the world playing it.”

by ScoresPro.com

Queen's Club: Murray's semi-final delayed until Sunday

Murray is planning on sticking with Mauresmo for long-term

Tennis Updates:

Andy Murray says he plans to stick with his French coach Amelie Mauresmo and her deputy Jonas Bjorkman for the forseeable future.

World number 3 Murray, on the 6th backroom team of his career, is currently working with Bjorkman at Queen’s Club while the heavily pregnant Mauresmo takes a break ahead of Wimbledon.

The 28-year-old Scot endured a painful parting with his previous coach Ivan Lendl last year after a successful period together that brought him Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon and the US Open.

“I hope that my coaching arrangement just now lasts for a long time,” said Murray, who defeated Spain’s Fernando Verdasco on Thursday to move into the Queen’s quarter-finals.

“I think it’s better to have continuity. I don’t want new coaches every year. I’m not that young anymore.

“I don’t want to have new coaches every year or couple of years.”

Murray also thinks highly of Sweden’s Bjorkman, a former Wimbledon semi-finalist who joined his team in April.

“I know him from when we were back when he was playing on the tour, so I know him pretty well,” Murray said.

“So it’s a lot quicker to understand each other’s personalities and stuff than it was maybe with Amelie or with Ivan because I didn’t know either of them at all when I started with them.

“All of these relationships, they always take a bit of time to start, you know, before you start to see the benefits of working together.”

Murray’s burgeoning relationships with Mauresmo and Bjorkman meant he was able to side-step questions about whether he would ever consider working with compatriot and friend Jamie Delgado.

Delgado has helped Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller, who faces Murray in the last eight at Queen’s, turn a career-threatening elbow injury into a rise back into the top 50.

“I think Jamie’s very knowledgeable about the game, he loves tennis, he’s been on the tour himself for a long time and he’s done a very good job with Gilles,” said Murray.

by ScoresPro.com

Murray is planning on sticking with Mauresmo for long-term

Queen's Club: Murray with another win

Tennis Updates:

Britain’s Andy Murray remains on course for a 4th Queen’s Club title after a hard-fought win over Fernando Verdasco in round 2. The top seed came through 7-5 6-4 against Spain’s world number 42 to reach the quarter-finals of the Aegon Championships.

He goes on to face Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller, who managed to beat defending champion from Bulgaria, Grigor Dimitrov 6-4 7-6 (7-5).

“It was a tricky match,” the Scot told reporters.

“I was happy with the way I moved. It was a little bit better than the first match.”

It was the 28-year-old’s 11th win in 12 matches against Verdasco, stretching back to 2007, and their first meeting on grass since the Scot recovered from two sets down to win their Wimbledon quarter-final two years ago.

The 2013 Wimbledon champion appeared in complete command at Queen’s Club after Verdasco double-faulted twice in his opening service game, with Murray then thumping away a forehand on break point.

Verdasco got the break back in game 7, however, and the 3-time champion was made to toil on a warm afternoon.

A tie-break loomed at 6-5 before Murray was able to take control once again, increasing the pressure and converting his 3rd set point when Verdasco found the net.

The early stages of the 2nd set saw the top seed severely tested on serve, with Verdasco missing a backhand on break point in game one and Murray finding two aces as he recovered from 0-40 in game three.

Verdasco, 31, then snuffed out a fleeting chance for Murray at 2-1 with a forehand down the line and the left-hander held firm until game 10.

Serving to stay in the match, the Spaniard double-faulted twice and saved a match point before, facing a second, he saw two aces ruled out by net cords.

When Verdasco finally made a second serve, Murray attacked with a forehand return and the Spaniard dragged a wayward backhand well over the baseline.

Muller earlier hit 19 aces to knock out Dimitrov, and the Bulgarian sixth seed joined former winner Rafael Nadal and French Open champion Stan Wawrinka as early casualties at Queen’s Club.

“I’ve been coming here for a long time and it was my first time on Centre Court,” the 32-year-old, ranked 48th, told BBC Sport.

“It’s tough to beat that.”

Later on Thursday, Feliciano Lopez plays John Isner before Marin Cilic takes on Viktor Troicki.

by ScoresPro.com

Queen's Club: Murray with another win

Queen's: Murray wins against Yen-Hsun Lu

Tennis Updates:

Andy Murray made a winning start to his grass-court season with a straight-sets win over qualifier Yen-Hsun Lu at Queen’s Club. The Scot won 6-4 7-5 at the Aegon Championships and will play Spain’s Fernando Verdasco in round two.

Murray, the top seed and a three-time champion, fell behind in both sets but came through in one hour and 19 minutes.

“I’ve had good runs here, I love playing here,” Murray told BBC Sport.

“But it’s an extremely strong field this year, stronger I think than any years previously, so I’m going to have to play good tennis if I want to do well this week.”

On a day when Rafael Nadal made a shock early exit, Murray avoided a similar fate despite some edgy moments against Lu.

The 31-year-old from Chinese Taipei is ranked 63rd but made it through qualifying and can point to a Wimbledon quarter-final appearance on his CV, albeit five years ago, and a win over Murray at the Olympics in 2008.

Lu certainly looked at ease on the grass as he broke serve in game five with a running forehand pass, jolting Murray to life.

The Scot, 28, broke straight back and appeared to have the match under control when a Lu error gave him the set.

There were signs of rustiness, however, when Murray let a 40-0 lead slip at the start of the second and Lu consolidated for a 2-0 lead.

With Swede Jonas Bjorkman – on coaching duties this week – watching from courtside, Murray hauled himself level again at 2-2 with a forehand into the corner.

With serve then holding sway, a tie-break loomed and the possibility of a third set, but Murray averted that danger at 6-5 by taking his first match point with a forehand lob.

“I felt like I moved pretty well,” Murray added. “I didn’t start the match off serving so well but I got that rhythm more in the second set.

“I felt like I hit the ball well from the back of the court but could have served a bit better today.”

Interestingly, Chelsea football manager Jose Mourinho was at Queen’s Club.

by ScoresPro.com

Queen's: Murray wins against Yen-Hsun Lu

Queen's: Rafael Nadal out

Tennis Updates:

Rafael Nadal made an early exit at Queen’s Club with a three-set defeat by unseeded Ukrainian Alexandr Dolgopolov. The Spanish 5th seed led by a break in the final set but went down 6-3 6-7 (6-8) 6-4 in round one of the Aegon Championships.

Nadal, 29, had arrived in London following victory at the Stuttgart grass-court event on Sunday.

French Open champion Stan Wawrinka and title holder Grigor Dimitrov both progressed.

Wawrinka began his grass-court season with a 6-3 6-4 win over Australia’s Nick Kyrgios, and Dimitrov completed a 4-6 6-3 6-4 victory over Sam Querrey.

Britain’s Andy Murray beat Taiwanese qualifier Yen-Hsun Lu, before US Open champion and fourth seed Marin Cilic beat Frenchman Adrian Mannarino 7-6 (7/3), 3-6, 6-2.

Nadal made a slow start against Dolgopolov, dropping serve immediately and almost falling a double break behind.

Dolgopolov served out the first set with little fuss, keeping Nadal at bay with his unorthodox mix of pace and spin, and had his first chance to win the match at 6-5 in the tie-break in the second set.

A swinging serve saved Nadal and the 2008 champion seemingly made the decisive move early in the third, converting his first break point after one hour and 42 minutes.

However, a time violation followed for the Spaniard and Dolgopolov got back on level terms at 4-4, fending off three break points before grabbing his second match point with a forehand winner.

“I was fighting in every point,” Nadal said. “I was with the right concentration, with the right motivation, not giving up when I had tough moments.

“I’m not happy I lost a match that I had a chance to win, but that’s it. That’s tennis on grass.”

Nadal made a slow start against Dolgopolov, dropping serve immediately and almost falling a double break behind.

Dolgopolov served out the first set with little fuss, keeping Nadal at bay with his unorthodox mix of pace and spin, and had his first chance to win the match at 6-5 in the tie-break in the second set.

A swinging serve saved Nadal and the 2008 champion seemingly made the decisive move early in the third, converting his first break point after one hour and 42 minutes.

However, a time violation followed for the Spaniard and Dolgopolov got back on level terms at 4-4, fending off three break points before grabbing his second match point with a forehand winner.

“I was fighting in every point,” Nadal said. “I was with the right concentration, with the right motivation, not giving up when I had tough moments.

“I’m not happy I lost a match that I had a chance to win, but that’s it. That’s tennis on grass.”

“I was very positive and woke up in a good spirit,” said the sixth seed.

by ScoresPro.com

Queen's: Rafael Nadal out

Soccer News: Radamel Falcao to join Chelsea next season

Soccer News and Rumors:

Last season was more than a bust for the Colombian star, Radamel Falcao. The forward just wasn’t able to find his place with Manchester United and played arguably the worst campaign of his professional career as a football player. However, it seems that hasn’t bothered Chelsea even one bit. The latest reports are that the club from London has reached an agreement with Monaco for receiving Falcao as part of a one-year loan deal. Furthermore, there will be an option for Chelsea to buy the striker for €50 million at the end of next season.

The most interesting part of this is that Falcao has stated that he is ready to even take a large pay cut in order for the deal to be made.

“[Falcao] is keen to join the champions and is willing to take a massive pay cut to make the deal happen – his current deal with Monaco is worth £265,000 a week. The Colombian is ready to accept being part of Chelsea’s squad and Blues boss Jose Mourinho is considering the deal which would see him back up Diego Costa and Loic Remy. Agent Jorge Mendes is trying to broker the deal as he looks after both Falcao and Mourinho.”

There aren’t any details whether Falcao has actually agreed to receive less money per week, but in my opinion he will definitely not receive his full £265,000 a week. However, it will be quite interesting to see how the Colombian striker will play next campaign. It’s a bit hard to see him as a starter, but it’s not impossible and it all depends on what kind of tactic Jose Mourinho will choose. In my opinion, Falcao will undoubtedly play a lot better than he did during his stay at the Old Trafford.

By ScoresPro.com

Soccer News: Radamel Falcao to join Chelsea next season

Queen's Club: Ward loses to Raonic

Tennis Updates:

Canadian third seed Milos Raonic recovered from a set down to beat Britain’s James Ward in round one of the Aegon Championships. Ward, ranked 109, served superbly early on but Raonic came through 5-7 6-3 6-2.

“It’s tough on the body – I’m glad with the way I played and competed,” said Raonic, playing his first tournament since foot surgery in May.

Four-time champion Lleyton Hewitt earlier lost to Kevin Anderson on his last appearance at Queen’s Club.

The Australian had a match point in the second set but could not convert, and South Africa’s Anderson came back to win 6-7 (5-7) 7-5 6-2.

Hewitt, 34, was making his 16th and final appearance at the west London club.

“It was special to come back, knowing it was going to be the last one as well,” said the wildcard, who plans to retire after the Australian Open in January.

“I have played so many big matches in front of big crowds here over the years with big names, quality players.

“For most of the first two sets I played pretty well out there.”

Defending champion Grigor Dimitrov recovered from a break down in the second set to level at 4-6 6-3 against 2010 winner Sam Querrey, with the match to conclude on Tuesday.

Ward, 28, had appeared on course for one of the best wins of his career against Raonic as both men looked to overcome recent foot problems.

The Londoner made 81% of his first serves as he dominated the first set and then threatened to break early in the second.

However, Raonic held on and began to find his range, converting his first break point to lead 5-3 and going on to drop just two more games.

The Canadian, playing his first tournament since Madrid in April, goes on to face Frenchman Richard Gasquet in round two.

“It’s past me,” Raonic said of the trapped nerve in his foot. “I’m just trying to make the most of being back on court.

“James played great. The next match is going to be a very difficult one but I’ve got to get myself together and give it my all.”

Ward said he took “a lot of positives” from the match, adding: “I played really well for the first set and a half, probably two sets.

“I may be dropped off a little bit in the beginning of the third, which gave him a bit of extra confidence and he was serving well throughout.”

Fernando Verdasco and Guillermo Garcia-Lopez also went through on Monday, with British number one Andy Murray in action on Tuesday, along with former champion Rafael Nadal and French Open winner Stan Wawrinka.

by ScoresPro.com

Queen's Club: Ward loses to Raonic

Nadal triumphs in Stuttgart

Tennis Updates:

Rafael Nadal managed to win his 2nd title of the season and his 4th on grass as he defeated Serb Viktor Troicki 7-6 (7/3), 6-3 on Sunday to become the first man to triumph on both clay and turf at the Stuttgart Open.

The Spanish top seed set another minor record, as he won the inaugural grass edition after taking clay trophies here in 2005 and 2007. Stuttgart made the switch to grass starting with this edition as part of the new Wimbledon pre-season.

Nadal’s 66th career title marked his 2nd in 2015 after claiming a trophy on South American clay last February. The Spaniard now owns two grass titles at Wimbledon plus 2008 Queen’s Club, London and now Stuttgart.

The 14-time grand slam champion who is ranked 10th, polished his record against eighth seed Troicki to 5-0, last facing the Serb in a Tokyo semi-final nearly five years ago. Nadal took victory as he played his his 95th career final, now standing 66-29 in finals.

His last grass final came at Wimbledon in 2011 when he lost to Novak Djokovic. Troicki was playing his seventh career final – and first on grass – and now stands 2-5 in title matches.

Nadal’s victory boosted him to 33-10 this season as he prepares for what he hopes is a better second half of 2015. He is now 17-2 in Stuttgart, where he last competed eight years ago.

“It’s fantastic to win here on grass after winning on clay. Victor is a tough opponent.

“But I’ve been gaining confidence over the past month and a half after a very poor first three and a half months of this season.

“I’ve been feeling my game better since after my first match in Monte Carlo (mid-April). It was mentally tiring for me to play tennis in the first part of the year. I was not feeling comfortable on court.

“I was not able to play the way that I wanted. I didn’t feel confidence. But that has been changing and my focus now if to prepare as best as I can for Wimbledon.”

Nadal added: “My level has always been there, I’ve not forgotten how to play tennis. But now things are coming together for me.”

Nadal spent 48 minutes in winning the opening set, which he took into a tiebreaker with a love game. The top seed grabbed the early 4-2 lead in the decider and fired a ninth ace to wrap up the opener.

In the second, the Spaniard broke for 3-1 and took victory on his third match point, ending with 11 aces in the 88-minute contest.

by ScoresPro.com

Nadal triumphs in Stuttgart

Nadal into Stuttgart final

Tennis Updates:

Rafael Nadal reached the final of the Mercedes Cup in Stuttgart with a straight-set victory over France’s Gael Monfils. The 29-year-old Spaniard, who is the top seed, won 6-3 6-4 inside 80 minutes and will play Viktor Troicki in Sunday’s final.

Monfils was hindered by five double faults and he failed to convert any of his four break points.

Nadal’s last title on grass came at Wimbledon in 2010.

“I think I’m playing well,” Nadal told Sky Sports. “It’s important for me, after losing at Roland Garros, to keep going and have the right attitude, the right level of tennis in the next couple of weeks and that is what I am trying.

“I’m practising every day with a very positive attitude, working a lot of hours on court. I’m enjoying again the tennis and every victory is important and being in the final is great news.”

His opponent in the final, Troicki, beat Croatia’s Marin Cilic 6-3 6-7 (1-7) 7-6 (7-2) and the 29-year-old Serb will be bidding to win his third career title, and second of the year, after his success in Sydney in January.

Elsewhere, Swiss teenager Belinda Bencic closed in on a maiden WTA title by beating former world number one Jelena Jankovic to reach the Topshelf Open final.

The fourth-seeded 18-year-old showed no fatigue after a gruelling three-hour quarter-final against Kristina Mladenovic, winning 6-3 6-3 in 87 minutes in ‘s-Hertogenbosch.

In the men’s tournament, France’s Nicolas Mahut reached the final with a 5-7 6-3 6-4 victory over Robin Haase.

“I’m slowly improving on grass. It would be fantastic to win here, but I can only focus on the final and try to play my best.”

He added: “I was feeling better with my tennis after the first two matches this week, it is always tough to start on this surface.

“Today I played aggressive and did what I had to do to keep my level high. I’ve not been in a grass final since 2011 (Wimbledon, losing to Novak Djokoic). This is important news for me.

“I’m enjoying being in this final and I’ll hope to be ready tomorrow.”

Serbian Troicki was overwhelmed to have done so well this week.

“It’s my first grass court final and I’m really excited to have gotten here,” he said.

“It was a great match for me, I served very well and used my slice. The match was very even most of the time but I was able to use a couple of chances to make the difference.”

by ScoresPro.com

Nadal into Stuttgart final

Murray ready for Queen's Club tournament

Tennis Updates:

Britain’s Andy Murray is ready to begin his grass-court campaign at Queen’s Club next week after recovering from a bout of illness. Murray, 28, said he suffered with a cough during the French Open and his left eye later closed up.

The Scot lost to Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals last Saturday, and took three days off on returning to the UK.

“I was actually sick for about a week, so I needed to recover from that,” world number three Murray said.

“I actually felt OK the first few days, but the day I played David Ferrer, I didn’t feel great.

“When I got on court and started running around it was fine, but when I got back my left eyelid closed up.

“I had a bad cough for a couple of days after that as well.

“I don’t know if I was just run down or tired or whatever, but it had obviously been a long few weeks. I feel fine now.”

Murray confirmed that coach Amelie Mauresmo, who is due to give birth in August, will be with him at Wimbledon, with Swede Jonas Bjorkman taking on coaching duties at Queen’s.

“I would imagine that during Wimbledon Amelie would kind of take the lead and Jonas can see how we operate a bit more as a team,” he said.

The defeat by Djokovic ended a 15-match winning run for Murray on clay, and the two-time major winner now switches his attention to trying to match the likes of John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Lleyton Hewitt and Andy Roddick by winning a fourth title at Queen’s Club.

Top seed Murray will play a qualifier in round one of the Aegon Championships, with the match likely to take place on Tuesday.

The tournament carries ATP 500 status for the first time this year, upgraded from 250, and takes place a week later, creating a gap after Roland Garros.

Five of the world’s top 10 players are in London for the Wimbledon warm-up.

Second seed Stan Wawrinka, fresh from winning the French Open last Sunday, will play Nick Kyrgios – the Australian who beat Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon last year – in round one.

Kyrgios, 20, described Wawrinka’s tennis in Paris last week as “extraordinary”, adding: “Every time I’m here, it’s hard not to think about what happened last year.

“I’d like to think I’ve done a lot of good things since then as well, which have also boosted my confidence.”

Fifth seed Nadal returns to Queen’s Club for the first time since 2011 and plays Ukraine’s Alexandr Dolgopolov, while defending champion and sixth seed Grigor Dimitrov opens against former champion Sam Querrey.

British number four James Ward will play Canada’s third seed Milos Raonic on Monday.

by ScoresPro.com

Murray ready for Queen's Club tournament

NBA Rumors: The Dallas Mavericks looking like strong candidates to land LaMarcus Aldridge in the offseason

Basketball, NBA Rumors:

As the playoffs for the Portland Trail Blazers are now over, they have only one thing to worry about – how to make the team better for next season. However, they may face a little bit of a challenge. Portland’s big man and franchise player, LaMarcus Aldridge, has been constantly surrounded by trade rumors lately, which could be pretty bad news for the Trail Blazers. The latest reports are that the San Antonio Spurs and Dallas Mavericks have shown a lot of interest in the power forward. Nevertheless, both franchises will have to work very hard in order to lure Aldridge away from Portland.

Last offseason Aldridge stated that he is more than happy in Portland and he wishes to become one of the franchise’s best, but it seems that kind of attitude is long gone. The Trail Blazers haven’t performed as well as everyone expected this season and the fact that the team was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs may be the reason why the big man wants to leave. The San Antonio Spurs recognized that, and according to various sources around the league, they contacted Aldridge in order to recruit him. However, they weren’t the only team to do that. The Dallas Mavericks also showed a lot of interest in the power-forward and if the reports are true, Aldridge is more than interested to join them in the offseason.

The Portland Trail Blazers will surely do everything possible in order to keep LaMarcus Aldridge on the team, which includes a pretty big contract if the rumors are true. However, the fact that the team hasn’t been able to advance to the second round of the postseason more than once in the last five years isn’t exactly a big positive.

By ScoresPro.com

NBA Rumors: The Dallas Mavericks looking like strong candidates to land LaMarcus Aldridge in the offseason

Rafael Nadal wins against Marcos Baghdatis in Stuttgart

Tennis Updates:

Rafael Nadal overcame a stubborn Marcos Baghdatis in Stuttgart as he attempts to get his season back on track. The 29-year-old Spaniard, down to 10th in the world rankings, beat the Cypriot 7-6 (7-5) 6-7 (4-7) 6-2 on grass to reach the Mercedes Cup quarter-finals.

Nadal, who lost to Novak Djokovic in the French Open quarter-finals last week, took charge in the third set. The 14-time Grand Slam winner will face Australian fifth seed Bernard Tomic, who saw off Tommy Haas 7-6 (8-6) 6-2.

Tomic was taken to a tie-break in the first set of his second round match by 37-year-old Haas, returning after a year out following shoulder surgery, before he progressed.

Nadal, who had a bye into the second round, said: “The first match on grass is always tough. He’s a very good player and he’d already played a match.

“I need to be more aggressive, to return better, and to move better.

Nadal, at his lowest ranking since he was 11th as a teenager 10 years ago, faced solid resistance from 2006 Australian Open runner-up Baghdatis and dipped to a 59% first serve in the second set.

But the top seed powered clear after breaking in the fourth game of the decider to win in two hours and 40 minutes.

It was a morale-boosting win for the Spaniard who suffered only his second defeat in 72 matches at the French Open last week when he lost in the quarter-final to Novak Djokovic.

The 29-year-old top seed, down at 10th in the ATP rankings after a disappointing year, will have been pleased at how he responded in the deciding set having been pegged back by Baghdatis and the two hours 40 minutes he spent honing his grass court game will serve him well.

”I couldn’t serve the way I wanted to,” a frustrated Haas said.

German qualifier Mischa Zverev continued his good run, beating Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-2, 6-4 for a place in the last eight. Zverev will face second-seeded Marin Cilic, the U.S. Open champion, who beat Matthias Bachinger of Germany 7-6 (2), 6-3.

by ScoresPro.com

Rafael Nadal wins against Marcos Baghdatis in Stuttgart