(Tennis news) After consecutive losses, Rafael Nadal ended his ATP Finals campaign on a positive note with a 7-5 7-5 win over Norway’s Casper Ruud. The match had no real consequence as it was already clear that Nadal would not progress to the last four after defeats against Taylor Fritz and Felix Auger-Aliassime. The victory will help Nadal prepare himself for the next season and will help him get extra ranking points. 

Speaking to Amazon Prime, Nadal said “I have been practicing well, just probably not enough matches to be at the level I needed to be, not enough confidence after six tough months. But that's how it is. Accept that things didn't go the way that I wanted. At least I finished with a positive victory. It's important. I'm happy about that." The Spaniard has struggled since the French Open but the 22 time Grand Slam winner has had one of the most successful seasons in his career. 

Nadal went on to win the Australian Open and French Open for the first time in his career, thereby securing more Grand Slams than any other player in the men’s category. Speaking about his season, the Spaniard said “I can't ask for more – 2022, even if it has been a tough last six months, two grand slams, finishing the year in my highest point on the ranking, I can't complain at all. At my age, being able to achieve and be competitive means a lot to me. For 2023, let's try to have the proper preparation, work the right way and then start the season with the right energy and the right attitude that I need to be competitive from the beginning. I'm excited about it." 

In other results, Britain's Lloyd Glasspool and Finn Harri Heliovaara progressed to the doubles semi-finals on their debut in Turin. The pair defeated Spain's Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos of Argentina 6-0 6-4 in their final round-robin match. Previously, they overcame Marcelo Arevalo and Jean-Julien Rojer and their only defeat came against Britain's Joe Salisbury and American Rajeev Ram. Speaking after the match, Glasspool said: "It just shows how much hard work we put in and it's really nice to have it pay off. It's amazing to be able to play our best stuff on the biggest stage. We're ready for whoever comes." 

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