Rafael Nadal lost the Swedish Open final in straight sets to Portugal’s Nuno Borges.

In Bastad, Borges overcame Nadal 6-3 6-2, finishing the match slamming down an ace before he fell to his knees and buried his hands in his face, a sign of just what the victory meant to Borges.

It was Borges’ first title on the ATP Tour. “I don’t know what to say,” he reflected afterwards.

“I was wishing for this moment for a while already. It’s crazy, tennis doesn’t happen when you expect it sometimes.”

Borges delivered a rock-solid performance against the 22-time Grand Slam winner. He was consistent throughout as he broke Nadal’s serve five times.

Nadal’s first ATP Tour final since 2022 ended in defeat. The Spanish legend was playing in this clay-court event to prepare himself for the Olympic Games at Roland Garros.

The 38-year-old did not enter Wimbledon this year because he did not want to risk injury switching from clay to grass and back again before the Olympics.

Nadal has been recovering from hip and abdominal injuries over the last 18 months.

“I know we all wanted Rafa to win and part of me wished that too,” Borges added. “But something even bigger inside of me really pushed through today, through the emotions, through all the ups and downs.

“Again it wasn’t even about playing my best tennis today. It was about coming up in the big moments where I won it and I couldn’t have played better. Just really happy overall.

“I really don’t know what to say I’m very emotional.”

Elsewhere, Matteo Berrettini claimed his second ATP Tour title of the season with a 6-3 6-1 win over Quentin Halys in the Swiss Open final.

Berrettini got the better of Stefanos Tsitsipas in a hard-fought last-four tie but wrapped up victory over France’s Halys inside an hour in Gstaad.

After the final initially stayed on serve, Berrettini broke to move 4-3 up in the first set and won nine of the next 10 games to add the Swiss Open crown to his Grand Prix Hassan II title in April.

What’s coming up on Sky Sports Tennis?

In the run-up to the final Grand Slam of 2024 – the US Open – you can watch all of the biggest tennis stars in action live on Sky Sports as they compete across the hard-court season.

• Prague Open (WTA 250) 21-26 July
• Iasi Open (WTA 250) 21-26 July
• Umag Open (ATP 250) 21-26 July
• Atlanta Open (ATP 250) – 22-28 July
• Generali Open, Kitzbuhel (ATP 250) – 22-28 July

Watch the WTA and ATP Tours throughout 2024 on Sky Sports Tennis. Stream Sky Sports Tennis and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership. No contract, cancel anytime.