After somewhat of a lacklustre showing in Abu Dhabi, Rafael Nadal is finally back to winning ways as the Spaniard defeated American Maxime Cressy in straight sets. The Spaniard had a very good showing in the final against Cressy who at times looked rather good despite this being his first ATP Finals. The start of the match featured some early nerves by Cressy
The American was forced to save a few break points early and after he was able to do so he settled in nicely. Nadal took some time to adjust to his opponent and once again had break points later on. Ultimately he was not able to find a breakthrough and the matter had to be settled in the tiebreak. Nadal ultimately played better and won it with 8-6.
It was fairly close as was the whole match but after Nadal finally found a breakthrough and won the first set, he started playing a lot better. Cressy was decent but over time he simply could not produce a level to keep up with Nadal who was able to finish up the match in straightforward fashion winning the final set with 6-3. The trophy is his 89th in his career. Truly remarkable.
Rafael Nadal comes back to the ATP Tour after five months with a title in Melbourne, beating Maxime Cressy in the final, 7-6(6), 6-3. 89th career singles title. Nadal still looks far from his best (and from the level needed to win a Slam), but very important week. [getty]
