Nadal is King of Toronto World No. 2 Rafael Nadal of Spain is king of Toronto once again, winning the Rogers Cup singles title in dominating fashion. He captured the trophy by defeating German Nicolas Kiefer 6-3, 6-2 in the championship match on Sunday afternoon.
If there was any doubt before this week, Nadal proved that he is far and away the top player on the ATP Tour at this moment. He will leave Toronto riding a 29-match winning streak, having captured the trophy in eight of the past nine tournaments he's competed in. After dominating the clay courts for so many years, Nadal has improved his game to such a level that he is now capable of winning on any surface, adding both grass and hard court titles to his resume this season. At just 22 years of age, he has now captured 30 singles titles in his professional career, becoming the third-youngest player to reach that milestone.
In the final, Kiefer hung in as long as he possibly could and the match was closer than the score would indicate. In the fifth service game of the second set, he had several break opportunities as the two men played through six deuce points. However, Nadal was simply too much on this day, as he has been throughout the week, and his supreme talent was ultimately the difference.
Despite the defeat, Kiefer's appearance in the final capped off a remarkable week of tennis that saw him knock off three seeded players in five wins. Before Sunday, the 31-year-old veteran had not played in a championship match since 2005 due to a string of wrist and ankle injuries. However, he showed this week he has found the form that once helped him climb as high as No. 4 in the world rankings.
Nadal is now only the second player since 1995 to win two Rogers Cup singles titles, joining current world No. 1 Roger Federer of Switzerland on that list. With the win, Nadal creeps closer to Federer for the top spot in the world rankings and could eclipse his arch rival next week in Cincinnati.
Nadal is King of Toronto 