Rafa Jódar’s dream in Canada was ended in the early hours of this Thursday by Brandon Nakashima. The American, ranked 31st in the world, played a very complete and aggressive match that knocked the Madrid native out of his first Masters 1000 semifinals (6-7(3) and 4-6, 2h 2m). On the Montreal hard court, the ball moved a lot today for the player coached by Wayne Ferreira, especially with his forehand and serve, two areas in which he posted spectacular stats. At 25 years old, Nakashima had never reached a final in the second tier of tournaments and came into the match against the tennis sensation of the year without the favorite tag. His tennis, however, rose as if he were a top-10 player to prevent Jódar, who will be ranked eleventh in the ATP ranking next Monday at 19 years old, from also debuting in the decisive match of a Masters 1000. In tomorrow’s final, he will face the winner of the match between his compatriots Learner Tien (19th) and Ben Shelton (10th).
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Nakashima’s performance was impressive. It didn’t matter that he was facing a player who was on a roll and who in Montreal had already sent home Corentin Moutet (59th), Lorenzo Mussetti (13th), Jiri Lehecka (12th), and Arthur Fils (24th), and who ten days ago, at the ATP 500 in Washington, had only lost in the final to Taylor Fritz (8th). The American unleashed his arm from the start with astonishing confidence. One hammer followed another. The barrage of shots was so intense that he earned six break points — also six winners — in the first two games, all frustrated by Jódar, who fought and fought and clung to the court until he lost in the tie break, always trailing the pace set by Nakashima.
Wayne Ferreira’s protégé, son of two pharmacists, maintained his aggression and already struck at the start of the second set when he broke the Madrid native’s serve. His show with the serve did not allow Jódar to enjoy his first two break points until 1-3 in the second set, both saved with two good first serves that prevented him from even putting the ball in play. The Spanish player murmured, complained, and also let out a cry of despair when he was down 3-4 and wasted a 15-30 on the return with two inaccurate backhands: one went long and the other hit the net. Then he got tangled up with his serve until he saved two match points and raised his arms to the sky to ask for the crowd’s support. He had four break point opportunities on the return, but Nakashima held on and took a duel in which he displayed a magnificent level of tennis to reach his first Masters 1000 final.
Despite the defeat, Jódar left Montreal after a great tournament. Not only for reaching his fourth semifinal of the year after winning in Marrakech and being runner-up in Barcelona and Washington, but for the feelings he conveyed throughout a week in which he played with a lot of calm and also a lot of confidence despite being 19 years old until he came up against the best version of Nakashima.
The Madrid native, unless there is a change of plan in his schedule, will now travel to Cincinnati for the last Masters 1000 before the US Open begins, the last Grand Slam of the year, which will be held from August 30 to September 13. His good results have not only placed him on the doorstep of the top-10, but have also put him fully in the fight to enter the ATP Finals, which feature the eight best players of the season. Jódar is currently seventh in the race, which could make him the first rookie in circuit history to qualify for the tournament held in Turin in November.
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