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David Goffin: Chances Against World No. 1 Rafael Nadal

By Harry Floyd

BARCELONA, SPAIN - APRIL 24: David Goffin of Belgium plays a backhand against Marcel Granollers of Spain in their match during day three of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on April 24, 2018 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
BARCELONA, SPAIN - APRIL 24: David Goffin of Belgium plays a backhand against Marcel Granollers of Spain in their match during day three of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell on April 24, 2018 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images) /
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David Goffin has a 1-2 career head-to-head record against the Spanish superstar Rafael Nadal. He faces him in Barcelona with a chance to even the scorecard.

Up next for Belgian tennis star David Goffin at the 2018 Barcelona Open is the tournament’s top seed and defending champion. It’s Rafael Nadal taking on the world No. 1 Goffin in the Barcelona semifinals. They are two of the event’s top players.

Goffin enters action this week on the edge of the ATP Top 10. He has gone as high as the world No. 7 ranking in men’s singles as recently as November of 2017. Now, the rising star has a chance to take down the sport’s top-ranked player. With Swiss great Roger Federer out of the mix during the clay court season, Nadal emerges as a dominant world No. 1. There is a reason he is referred to as the King of Clay and the Spanish tennis star is once again proving that in Barcelona.

On the 2017 ATP World Tour, Goffin and Nadal had all of their previous meetings. Last year saw Nadal take two straight set matches over the younger Belgian. Then, Goffin roared back in a three set thriller during the ATP Finals. The win took the Belgian to the finals in London where he would face another rising star in Grigor Dimitrov. Goffin would fall to the Bulgarian, but Dimitrov is out of the mix this week at the Barcelona Open. The ATP Finals champion sees a loss to Pablo Carreno Busta during the quarterfinals.

Next: 2018 French Open Favorites

David Goffin is the fourth seed at the Barcelona Open. He has a chance to knock out the tournament’s heavy favorite in Rafael Nadal.

Action at Roland Garros is right around the corner. On the 2016 ATP World Tour, Goffin had his best run to date at the French Open when he reached the quarterfinals at the Grand Slam. Still in search of his first career Grand Slam singles win, David Goffin is one of several rising stars in men’s singles tennis who could taste glory on the 2018 ATP World Tour. A win over Nadal in Barcelona could do wonders to help his momentum and confidence moving forward. The two square off on Saturday at the Barcelona Open. Stay tuned to see if the young Belgian can pullout the upset and continue on for a chance at the title this week.

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