Rafael Nadal may having one of the worst seasons in his illustrious career. But the former world number one was too much for the competition in Hamburg, taking the title with a win over Fabio Fognini.
The Spaniard cruised into final with a straight-set semifinal win in which he dropped only three games. But Fabio Fognini of Italy, who won this event in 2013 proved to be a sterner test.
The margin of victory in both sets was a single service break in a match that went over two-and-a-half hours. But in the end, the Mallorcan prevailed 7-5, 7-5.
The win keeps alive Nadal’s streak of winning at least one ATP clay-court title per season, which dates back to 2004. Nadal seems to like playing in Germany. He also won the Stuttgart Open earlier this year – his only other tournament win this season.
Nadal takes home 311,775 euros for the Hamburg win.
