Nadal Claims First Title in 2014 with Win over Monfils in Doha

By hugree on January 4th, 2014

Rafa Nadal began his year in perfect fashion with victory over Gael Monfils in Doha on Saturday. The Spaniard won his first title of the year in an exciting, nearly two-hour final at the Qatar Open on Saturday. Nadal dominated the first set, taking it in just 23 minutes. Monfils settled into the match in the second set, initially taking a 3-0 lead and taking the set in the tiebreaker. In the third set, Nadal broke Monfils in the fourth game when the Frenchman shipped two forehands long from 30-30 and and held on to the lead on his way to a 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-2 win. Victory took Nadal past Andre Agassi into eighth spot on the all-time list of ATP Tour title winners and helped him extend his lead at the top of the rankings over Novak Djokovic who opted not to play this week.