Rafael Nadal spoiled the party for birthday boy Stefanos Tsitsipas as the world No. 1 sealed his fourth Canadian Masters 1000 title at the Rogers Cup in Toronto on Sunday.
Greek star Tsitsipas was out to slay another tennis giant in the shape of the dominant Spaniard as he looked to celebrate his 20th birthday in style, Sky Spots reported.
Tsitsipas has pulled off one surprise after another dispatching Dominic Thiem, Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev in the previous three rounds before battling back to send the Wimbledon runner-up Kevin Anderson packing to reach his maiden ATP Masters 1000 final.
But a fifth Top 10 opponent in a week proved too much for the young tennis prodigy as top-ranked Nadal battled away to record a 6-2 7-6 (7-4) victory on Sunday.
Nadal complemented his opponent, saying: “He’s a great player and he has great potential. He’s brave, he’s young and he’s got the right energy so he has a great future.”
The Spaniard dominated in his only previous meeting with Tsitsipas, a straight sets win in the final of the Barcelona Open and the 32-year-old was at it again during a one-sided first set.
Despite the youngster forcing the second set into a tie-breaker it was Nadal who won a battle of the tennis generations to land his 80th ATP title and his first on hardcourts in five years.
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