Botic van de Zandschulp suggests overcoming a thriller against Daniel Altmaier wasn’t that hard because the Dutch doesn’t think anything ever will be as hard as playing Rafael Nadal in front of the Spanish crowd in the 38-year-old’s last pro match.
On Tuesday, the world No. 80 upset the 22-time Grand Slam champion 6-4 6-4 in the opening match of the Netherlands and Spain quarterfinal tie at the Davis Cup Finals. Since the Dutch team went on to win in three rubbers, the 29-year-old turned out to be the last player who played and defeated the former world No. 1. Also, it should be noted that the match was played in Malaga in front of a sold-out crowd that heavily supported Nadal.
Three days later, van de Zandschulp returned to the court and edged out 88th-ranked Altmaier 6-4 6-7 (12) 6-3 after two hours and 44 minutes of play.
After winning the first set, the Dutchman also led 4-2 in the second set and had four break points to go up by a double break. But after failing to realize them – he dropped his serve – the set went into a tie-break – where he missed out on five break points before losing the set.
However, dropping the second set in a very devastating way didn’t impact much van de Zandschulp, who started the decider with an early break. While the world No. 80 blew that early break, he didn’t panic and broke Altmaier again in the eighth game before serving out for the match in the following game.
“I’m not sure actually [how I did it], I didn’t know what to do anymore on those match points. In the second set, I had 4-2 15-40, I felt like if I had made the double break there, it would be game, set and match, In the tie-break, he handled some of the match points quite well, actually. I had the toughest match of my life on Tuesday, so everything that comes next is a little bit easier,” van de Zandschulp said following a thriller win over Altmaier.
Botic van de Zandschulp© KNLTB Tennis/Instagram – Fair Use
After this match, Tallon Griekspoor also delivered against Jan-Lennard Struff and Netherlands progessed into the final, where they will meet Italy or Australia on Sunday.
Van de Zandschulp answers if his Nadal victory has sunk in yet
Going into their Davis Cup tie, the former world No. 22 admitted he would like to play the Spaniard because he used to idolize and look up to the Spaniard. And not only that it happened, but he also ended up being the last to play the record 14-time French Open champion.
While it was probably the most special moment of van de Zandschulp’s career, for now he remains focused on the Davis Cup and will only think about his feat later.
“No, not yet. Maybe after the tournament. For me, this stuff always takes some time, especially when you’re during a tournament… You want to focus on the next match; same happened in the US Open for example with Carlos Alcaraz. That’s how I process things. Maybe in the next week I will process it,” he told the Olympics website.
Botic van de Zandschulp© KNLTB Tennis/Instagram – Fair Use
Van de Zandschulp admitted something was different about Nadal this time
For the 38-year-old, it was his first match on the main level since the Paris Olympics. And after everything he had been through in the last two years, it wasn’t surprising that he was far from his best level in Malaga.
Previously, Nadal clinched straight-set wins over van de Zandschulp at the French Open and Wimbledon in 2022.
“I haven’t really thought about it, actually. Of course it’s been different. I played him twice. Played him in Roland Garros, Wimbledon. I think he was a different player there maybe physically. I thought today he was, I won’t say struggling, but of course you see he gets older, and the injuries are taking its toll, I think. So, yeah, I haven’t really thought about being the last man to beat Rafa, but maybe I will in a couple of days,” the world No. 80 said in his post-match presser after beating the former world No. 1.
Following their match, van de Zandschulp also admitted that he never thought he would be in this position.
“A special evening for many reasons. The most special reason was that it was the end of Rafael Nadal’s career as a professional tennis player. He is the player that I watched for hundreds of hours since I was a young kid who dreamed of playing on the big stages. I never imagined playing against him one day, especially to share this moment with a true legend. Gracias, Rafa,” he noted.
It remains to be seen if van de Zandschulp can now cap off his week by winning the Davis Cup title.