Nadal failed to capitalise on another break opportunity to extend his lead and Bergs suddenly had three break-back points. But the Spaniard shut the door, winning five points in a row to maintain his advantage. He dug himself out of another mini-hole at 0-30 down in his next service game to put himself within touching distance of the second round.
After two hours and 53 minutes, Nadal finally got the job done and completed the comeback to book his spot in the second round where he faces No. 7 seed Hubert Hurkacz. While Bergs’ campaign in Rome is now over, fans could get to relive it if he decides to feature his match on his TikTok.
The world No. 108 shares vlogs and skits about life on tour and has more than 75,000 followers on the platform, with several videos racking up more than a million views. Nadal himself made an attempted foray into TikTok in 2021, creating an account on the platform. “I am a tennis player and learning this young tool… stay tuned,” his bio reads, though he hasn’t touched the account since.