- Nadal claims his 12th title at event with 6-4, 6-7 (6), 7-5 win
- Tsitsipas had match point on court that bears Nadal’s name
Rafael Nadal saved match point in a pulsating final against Stefanos Tsitsipas to win his 12th Barcelona Open title, almost falling to defeat in the arena that bears his name.
Nadal had only lost one set in his 11 previous finals in Catalonia, against David Ferrer in 2008. Such is his dominance of the event, the show court was renamed “Pista Rafael Nadal” in 2017. Tsitsipas had a chance to upstage his opponent with a match point at 5-4 in the final set, and seal back-to-back Tour titles after winning in Monte Carlo last week, but Nadal dug deep.
Related: Tsitsipas shocks Nadal in five-set thriller to reach Australian Open semi-final