Nadal was visibly upset when he watched a video screen showing highlights of Ballesteros’ career, as was former tennis great Manolo Santana, who watched from the stands. The 54-year-old Ballesteros died early Saturday of brain cancer.
“It’s a sad day for Spain, for all athletes,” said Nadal, who played golf with Ballesteros. “This win is much too small to dedicate to Seve—he’s one of the greatest players in the history of our sport.”
It was the first time Nadal and Federer had met two straight times not in a final, and Nadal appeared on course for another quick win—as in Miami—when Federer was broken to trail 3-0.
But Nadal lost his rhythm and hit the ball into the net to allow Federer back in, and the 2009 champion smashed a forehand at the net for a break in the 12th game on his way to a first-set lead.
The winner of the first set had taken the previous 12 meetings between these rivals.
But Nadal broke Federer immediately in the second set, and the Swiss star never seemed to recover from a disputed call that TV replays showed touched the sideline.
Nadal rode that momentum into the final set and went ahead 4-1 when Federer hit wide to be broken.
Federer emerged from a 20-shot rally with a break chance in the second-to-last game but sent his backhand into the net. Nadal clinched it when Federer hit his 45th unforced error into the net.
“Playing Federer always provides a special satisfaction as we have played so many important matches,” said Nadal, who improved to 16-8 overall against Federer. “It was a difficult game, not one of our best games for either of us.”
Bellucci’s booming forehand forced Djokovic into 19 unforced errors in the first set, the Serb often scrambling to get the ball back while deep behind the baseline.
Djokovic watched a triple break point disappear when his 36th-ranked opponent won 10 straight points and broke to lead 3-1. But the Serb broke back and tied the second set at 3-3 before smashing a forehand at the net for a second break, the set and a big boost.
Djokovic fired a crosscourt forehand to break Bellucci for 2-0 and was flying after that as he closed it out with his sixth ace.