Rafael Nadal might have been stretched to three sets against Bernard Tomic and Marcos Baghdatis in the initial rounds of the Stuttgart Open, but Nadal put up an emphatic performance against Gael Monfils in the semi-finals of the competition.
Nadal defeated Monfils with the score reading, 6-3 and 6-4, so, with this victory, Nadal has set up a date with Viktor Troicki from Serbia in the finals of the Stuttgart Open.
Since Wimbledon 2011, Nadal has not been able to impress on grass courts, despite putting up some decent performances in the last few years. Hence, Nadal will be eager to win this title and be in perfect shape for the upcoming 2015 Wimbledon championship.
The Spaniard seems to be confident of his performances in the competition as he feels he is playing well.
"It's a great feeling to be back in a final, especially on grass," ATP official website quoted Nadal as saying. "It's been since 2011, I didn't play a final on grass. So it's very good to be back and I think I'm playing well. It was a tough match but I played well against a very difficult opponent."
"I feel I'm doing things better on court, playing more relaxed, enjoying a little bit more. And that's the thing I need to do to have success in the game: work hard and be relaxed. That is what I'm doing and I hope to have a good second half of the season."
Nadal might be favourites to lift the Stuttgart Open title, especially after his opponent, Viktor Troicki played a two hours plus semifinal match against Marin Cilic with the score reading 6-3, 6-7(1), 7-6(2) on Saturday.
But, on the other hand, Viktor Troicki could well be oozing with confidence after defeating the second seeded player, Marin Cilic in the competition. This was Viktor Troicki's toughest game in the competition so far and he excelled in it.
His toughest test will now lie against hungry Nadal, who wants to use this Stuttgart Open to increase his confidence ahead of Wimbledon 2015.
The Stuttgart Open finals will be Troicki's first grass court finals and is really happy to have progressed to the title decider.
"I've been playing on grass since 2013 and to play in my first grass-court final, it's great," said Troicki. "I'm really happy with how I played. I'm looking forward to tomorrow's (Sunday) final."
He has won two ATP titles so far. Can he win his third title at Stuttgart?
Where to Watch Live
The Stuttgart Open Final between Rafael Nadal and Viktor Troicki is scheduled for 2:25pm local time (5:55pm IST, 1:25 pm BST, 8:25am ET).
Audience in Germany can watch it on Euro Sports 2.
International viewers can stream it live on ATP official website.
