NEW YORK—When Nikoloz Basilashvili walked on to Arthur Ashe Stadium to play Rafael Nadal in the round of 16 today at the US Open, it appeared that he faced an untenable pair of choices. The only time this 26-year-old man from Tbilisi, Georgia had played Nadal had come last year in the third round of Roland Garros. Nadal had won, more than handily, 6-0, 6-1, 6-0.
So what was Basilashvili to do? One option called for him to try and hit winners, a virtually impossible task versus a player as mobile and skilled as Nadal. But the second path—sheer steadiness—was even less viable.
In the previous round, Nadal had been profoundly tested by 27th-seeded Karen Khachanov, taking four hours and 23 minutes to win that match, 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (7), 7-6 (3). But while Khachanov demonstrated concussive firepower throughout, Basilashvili is far more of a slasher, subject to ups and downs.
While the Khachanov match had been on the scale of a rigorous final exam, the first two sets of Nadal-Basilashvili suggested a simple fill in the blanks test, of one man’s consistency toppling another’s streakiness. In the end, though, it turned out to be a demanding pop quiz, Nadal taking three hours and 19 minutes to subdue the surprising and captivating Basilashvili, 6-3, 6-3, 6-7 (8), 6-4.
Though playing in the round of 16 at a major for the first time, Basilashvili showed no nerves as the match got underway. But serving at 3-4, 30-40, he fell prey to Nadal’s form of genius: a great retrieval and a backhand lob that helped Nadal reset the point and eventually elicit in error. In the manner of such great champions as Pete Sampras and Roger Federer, that was all Nadal needed to break open the match. At 5-3, Nadal served out the set at 15 and then started the second by breaking Basilashvili at 15. He went on to take the second set 6-3.
Serving in the third at 0-1, love-40, Basilashvili fought off five break points to level that set and then broke Nadal to go up 2-1. Naturally, Nadal broke back immediately.