Satisfied with having upped his performance in the third round of the US Open, Rafael Nadal has challenged himself to show even more improvements next time out.
Nadal saw off Richard Gasquetin the third round, winning 6-0, 6-1, 7-5. He’ll now take on Frances Tiafoe in the Round of 16.
“All of these wins help to be a bit more confident,” Nadal said after his latest win. “Now it’s time to improve, to take a step forward.
“In the second week of the tournament against a great player like Frances Tiafoe, I have to be ready to play and I have to raise my level. I hope I can make it happen.
“I know it’s the right time to improve if I want to have a chance of continuing in the tournament. Today was a step forward and I need to do that again for the next match.”
Nadal was pleased by the manner in which he beat Gasquet. Having seen him off in two hours and 17 minutes after coming from a set down twice.??”It was my best match of the tournament,” Nadal said. “It’s easy to say that because the other day [against Fabio Fognini] was really tough.”
On his next opponent, Nadal had kind words.
“I think he’s playing great,” Nadal said of Tiafoe. “He has improved, he’s stronger than before, he has more matches and years on tour behind him.
“He has experience now. He’s already competed on the biggest stages and in latter rounds of tournaments.
“He plays with a lot of passion, a lot of energy. He’s very quick, he can play very aggressively. He’s a player I won’t beat if I don’t play well, so I have to be at my best.”
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