3 reached the quarter-final at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters before falling to an inspired Andrey Rublev in three sets, and was tested in every round of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, where he lifted his 12th trophy .
“I have been playing better, worse, but always in a positive line.
To reach his 12th final in Rome, Nadal had to manoeuvre past #NextGenATP Italian Jannik Sinner, save match points against lefty Denis Shapovalov, claim his revenge over Zverev and outgun big-serving Opelka.
Nadal will face top seed and five-time Rome champion Novak Djokovic for the 57th time in their ATP Head2Head rivalry as he seeks his 10th trophy in the Eternal City.
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