Nuno Borges Gets Pasts The King Of Clay To Secure Maiden ATP Title

The seventh seed Portuguese Nuno Borges defeated the 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the finals at the Nordea Open in Bastad to claim his maiden ATP singles title at 27 years old. Borges broke the former champion five times en-route to the title, winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-2 in 88 minutes. 

© Sipa USA via AP

Borges is only the second Portuguese player after João Sousa to win a title on the ATP Tour. He played great under pressure against Nadal, managing to control his nerves despite the overwhelming support for the Spaniard. He did well in important moments to hold serve and break his opponent. In the end, Borges was rewarded for his brutal hitting against Nadal, who was unable to raise his level like he did in the last two rounds to come back from a set down. Borges earned his first title in 2 years. 

After an injury-filled 2 years, Nadal’s performance at this tournament was the best we have seen since his last title run at Roland Garros in 2022. Despite losing in the final, the 38 year-old took all positives from the tournament, and will be looking to prepare and make a good run at the Paris Olympics, representing Spain.

It has been a season filled with a number of first-time title winners on the ATP Tour. Borges is already the ninth player to win their maiden title this season. With the win, Borges is set to move up nine places to a career-high ranking of number 42 on the PIF ATP Rankings when it refreshes on Monday.