Stat of the Day: Nadal now 51-2 vs. lefties on clay

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Stat of the Day: Nadal now 51-2 vs. lefties on clay

Can you guess the two players who’ve beaten him on this surface?

ByJohn Berkok

Published Apr 23, 2021

Each day of the week we'll highlight one of the most intriguing numbers or stats of the day...

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Rafael Nadal moved into his 13th career semifinal in Barcelona on Friday, defeating British lefty Cameron Norrie in the quarterfinals of the ATP 500 event, 6-1, 6-4, in an hour and 34 minutes.

With the win, Nadal improved to 51-2 in his career against fellow lefties on clay.

The only two losses could easily have swung his way, too. The first one came on the blue clay of Madrid in 2012, falling to Fernando Verdasco in the third round, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, after leading 5-2 in the third set. The second loss came against Horacio Zeballos in the final of Vina del Mar in 2013, 6-7 (2), 7-6 (6), 6-4—that was Nadal’s first tournament back after missing seven months with a left knee injury.

Back to the present day, though, Nadal is a win away from his 12th career final in Barcelona.

“I played well at the beginning today, especially in the first set,” he said after his win over Norrie. “I think I did a lot of things well, then I stopped myself a little bit. That’s something that cannot happen.”

Across all surfaces, Nadal is now 108-15 in his career against left-handers. He’s won his last 18 in a row, his last loss against a fellow southpaw coming against Denis Shapovalov in Canada in 2017.