HAMBURG, Germany — Top-seeded Rafael Nadal overcame some sloppy play on his beloved clay to beat Fabio Fognini 7-5, 7-5 and win the Hamburg Open for the second time on Sunday.
Nadal squandered a 3-1 lead in the final set and saved two set points before prevailing in 2 hours and 34 minutes over the eighth-seeded Italian and the 2013 Hamburg winner.
"It was a great match, many great points, many breaks, we fought hard," Nadal said. "I had many ups and downs."
Former top-ranked Nadal extended his run of having won at least one European clay-court title every year since 2004 when he took his maiden crown in Sopot, Poland.