Luca Nardi, new emperor of Manacor
Italian player Luca Nardi was crowned champion of the fourth edition of the Rafa Nadal Open by Sotheby’s International Realty after defeating the Belgian Zizou Bergs in a spectacular tight battle that finished (7-6, 3-6, 7-5) and lasted 3 hours.
After 48 competition matches and 116 sets played during the week at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar, the champion of the Rafa Nadal Open by Sotheby’s International Realty was decided in the third and definitive set in a match where the level of tennis was outstanding. The Italian, champion of prestigious junior tournament “Le Petit As” in 2017, stepped up and, despite his youth, was able to cope with the pressure and take his chances.
The result means the 19-year-old Italian now has three ATP Challenger Tour titles to his name so far this year, establishing himself in Mallorca as one of the biggest upcoming stars on the international horizon and as a hugely promising Next Gen ATP player. In the semi-finals, the Pesaro native beat Jerzy Janowicz, a Masters 1000 finalist in Paris Bercy and Wimbledon semi-finalist in 2013, while the same round saw Bergs end the dreams of Abedallah Shelbayh, a player who trained at the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar and who made history by recording the first wins for Jordanian tennis on the Challenger Tour. With this victory, Luca Nardi’s name joins those of Bernard Tomic (2018), Emil Ruusuvuori (2019) and Lukas Lacko (2021) in the event’s winners’ circle.
During the trophy ceremony, in front of the fans that packed the stands of the Academy during the entire weekend, the Italian was visibly emotional: “It’s been a really amazing week, all of the fans have been very affectionate and I’d like to thank them. I hope this tournament keeps going for a long time”. Joan Suasi, the tournament’s director, Alejandra Vanoli, Managing Director of Mallorca Sotheby’s International Realty and Cristóbal Bennásar, President of the Balearic Islands Tennis Federation were all present at the ceremony.
