Rafael Nadal of Spain staged a comeback from a set and a breakdown to defeat Duje Ajdukovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Saturday afternoon at the Nordea Open, securing his first tour-level final appearance since the 2022 Roland Garros.
After a gruelling four-hour match against Mariano Navone on Friday in Bastad, Nadal took some time to find his rhythm in his first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting with Croatian qualifier Ajdukovic. However, he elevated his game in time to overturn an early break in the second set, eventually breaking Ajdukovic’s serve five times in the second and third sets to claim a two-hour, 13-minute victory in the semi-finals.
Similar to his match with Navone, Nadal clinched the win even after relinquishing a double-break advantage in the final set. Ajdukovic managed to level from 0-3 to 3-3, but Nadal immediately broke back and then held his serve to secure the victory.
Despite a slow start to the match on Saturday, Nadal’s performance was more consistent than in his previous match against Navone. He was particularly effective on return, converting all six break points he faced against Ajdukovic, as per Infosys ATP Stats.
With an 11-8 record for the season, Nadal is set to face the seventh seed Nuno Borges, who overcame Thiago Agustin Tirante 6-3, 6-4 to make it to his first ATP Tour final, for the title in Sweden. The 38-year-old Nadal is riding a nine-match winning streak in Bastad, having won the title during his last visit in 2005.
Although Ajdukovic was defeated, he can take pride in a remarkable week in Bastad, where he notched victories over Luca Van Assche, Pavel Kotov, and Thiago Monteiro to reach his first ATP Tour semi-final. The 23-year-old’s performance has propelled him up 20 places to No. 110 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings, poised to reach a new career-high in the upcoming PIF ATP Rankings on Monday.