Rafael Nadal warmed up for Wimbledon in perfect style as he beat Novak Djokovic 7-6 7-5 to win the Artois Open Championship.
Spanish sensation too hot for Djokovic
Rafael Nadal warmed up for Wimbledon in perfect style as he beat Novak Djokovic 7-6 7-5 to win the Artois Open Championship at Queen's Club.
After his stunning French Open success, Nadal showed his versatility to power past his Serbian rival and become the first Spanish man to win a title on grass since Andres Gimeno won the Eastbourne trophy in 1972.
With just over a week to go before Wimbledon gets underway on June 23, the victory provides Nadal with a much needed boost as he aims to improve on his two runner-up finishes at the All England Club in 2006 and 2007.
Despite trailing 0-3 in the opening set, the 22-year-old roared back to break Djokovic and take the Australian Open champion into a pulsating tie-break.
Djokovic held one set point at 6-5 in the tie-break but Nadal took the next three points to win it 8-6 in 74 minutes - the Serbian throwing his racket to the turf in frustration.
Reprieve
Nadal seemed on course to race through the second set when he broke for a 2-0 lead, but Djokovic refused to concede and broke straight back.
The next six games went with serve but only after Djokovic saved two more break points to make it 4-4.
Djokovic looked to have made the most of his reprieve, breaking to love in the next game only to then lose his serve straight back while serving for the set.
And Nadal made the world number three pay the price for such profligacy, holding serve to lead 6-5 and then breaking Djokovic again to secure the win.
Reflecting on his defeat after the match, Djokovic said: "I tried, it was a great match. It's been a terrific week.
"I've only been playing on grass for three years so it's quite an improvement for me to get to the final."
