In one the greatest matches ever played on any venue, Rafael Nadal took everything his Spanish compatriot could throw at him and held off the hard-charging Fernando Verdasco in a semi-final matchup for the ages. This match will long be remembered for the extremely high quality of play and for the stream of remarkable [...]

Before the Madrid Masters Tournament began, Rafa was quoted as saying that he wanted to win this one for his loyal Spanish fans. On paper he had an easy draw through to the final, no top 10 players to meet on the way. It should have been a piece of cake for him, but he lost [...]