There are 21 years of difference between one and the other, 7,787 days exactly; the widest view in a Masters 1000. An abyss. When Darwin Blanch came into this world, in 2007, on the brink of crisis, Rafael Nadal had already collected 23 titles in the elite and was building a unique story that today, slowly, leads to his final. It is not known where or when or how it will take place, everything is unknown, but the protagonist’s words invite us to think about a more or less near outcome. So Madrid, his Madrid, the track that professes a unique and unconditional love for him, he emphasizes, enjoy him for the last time. It will not be this April 25, rather unpleasant due to the icy breeze and the freshness that surrounds the comfortable victory against the American, 1,028th in the world, a promising junior – a semi-finalist last year in Paris and Wimbledon – who bows without question : 6-1 and 6-0, in 1h 04m. As in Barcelona, Alex de Minaur is coming again.
Everything has a beginning and an end, it goes to the winner, who will stretch this final parade through the San Fermín neighborhood. “Yes, at least two more days,” responds Nadal, who in turn praises the 16-year-old boy, and remembers that the simple fact of competing is already gratifying for him: “This allows me to be one more day in Madrid, which means a lot to me. We are here almost as a gift, so I am happy to go out on the track again (on Saturday) and with the hope of doing it in the best possible way. It’s complicated, because he (Australian De Minaur, eleventh in the world) is playing at a very high level since the beginning of the season and the height here will favor his hitting; But hey, I continue my path, for me it is an opportunity.”
Blanch, a tennis player made here and there, in various parts of the world, quickly falls into the veteran’s trap. He enters the game lukewarm and the logical nerves are added by excess impetus, wanting to demonstrate too quickly in his debut in Madrid. Rushing is not a good advisor, he checks it right away. He wants to show the boy his left foot – Huesca roots, born in Florida, forged in Buenos Aires, Thailand and Taiwan, before settling in Spain – and the ball goes long time and again. Nadal reads the situation quickly, immediately throws the bait and the gap grows quickly. 3-0, 5-1, set; 4-0 in the second. He nails a couple of direct serves, but it is enough for the Mallorcan to pump the blow and slow the rhythm of the point so that the opponent thinks and gets tangled. He does not offer crumbs in the afternoon. This time, he prioritizes the emotional.
The action takes place in the strange atmosphere of the Magic Box. The public is aware that these days are the last hits of its hero in Madrid, and sentimentally rewinds with nostalgia: the titles of 2005 – then at the Rockódromo de la Casa de Campo -, 2010, 2013, 2014 and 2017; the battles fought with Ljubicic, Federer, Djokovic, Murray and so many others; the emotional link between one party and the other. “This track is special to me,” he said a day before. “Madrid loves you, Rafa!” They say to him when he is about to subtract. And he continues doing his thing, which essentially consists of buying time and avoiding setbacks, because at the end of the day the objective is to reach Paris on May 26, and all precautions are insufficient. So he proposes an afternoon bathed in chloroform. No fire or glare, they are left behind. It is Nadal in an aseptic version, against naturethe relevant one.
Neutral version
“I don’t aspire to win here,” he introduces to journalists after the duel. “Saturday is an opportunity to test myself in tennis. I simply think it is important to give myself the option to see how I can adapt to the competition. Sometimes it’s hard to understand, but I’ve played little in the last year and a half and I need time to see how I adapt to everything. I would have liked to play the ground at 100%, but I have no choice but to adapt now,” he continues before referring to De Miñaur, who beat him at the Godó 7-5 and 6-1. “He is a rival who gives you very little, he makes things very difficult, and at the moment I am in it becomes more difficult. They are games that require time and physical effort to win in most points; Let’s see where I am at to do it. My first priority is that nothing else happens to give me the opportunity to continue. I will go out to enjoy, to try to compete, and we will see what happens. “I don’t rule out anything, but I’m not a favorite.”
The tone of seriousness conveyed in the speech prolongs the game. Not a single decoration. All very neutral. Slight progression with the serve, but the resistance does not allow for true calibration. The victory would be one of the routine ones, a mere snack if it were not for the current circumstances, which invite us not to detract from each step on the track. “Rafa, thank you very much for coming to Madrid! Thank you very much!”, a lady thanks him from the stands, packed from top to bottom because the fuse is running out and if Nadal is down there it is for the simple reason that it is Madrid; Otherwise, she said twenty-four hours before, he wouldn’t play. Developer. So he proceeds with content, doing just enough for the young Blanch to fall like a ripe fruit, with his figure still to be made and as green as his kit.
“I am realistic about what really happens. But you have to be honest: I have played against a player who has made many errors (27 unforced, in total) and who has given me many facilities,” he explains; “With maximum respect for a player with a great future, he made mistakes and the game lasted an hour. It doesn’t change my perspective of Paris, I’m not making any decisions here; I’ll take it after Rome. Let’s not talk all day about whether I’m going to Paris or not. I’m going to make my way, and if I arrive, then I arrive, and if not, then I don’t.”
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