David Nalbandian became the first Argentine to reach a Wimbledon final when he beat Xavier Malisse of Belgium 7-6 6-4 1-6 2-6 6-2 in their semi-final on Saturday. The 20-year-old from Cordoba sealed his victory with a drop volley and sank to his knees in celebration of grabbing a place in Sunday's final against Australian world number one Lleyton Hewitt.
The players traded early breaks at the start of the fifth and deciding set on Saturday, but Nalbandian broke again for a 4-2 lead and held off two break points in the next match, before winning the set on the Belgian's serve.
The match on court one had started on Friday and Nalbandian raced out to a two-set lead with the pony-tailed Belgian suffering from a chest problem. Malisse, playing in his first Wimbledon semi-final, then fought his way back into the contest by winning the next two sets in the late evening. Darkness was falling as he clinched the fourth set and play was suspended until today.
Afterwards, Nalbandian's delight at making the Wimbledon final was obvious. "This is the best week of my life. It's very great for me but I don't have too much time to enjoy it. Before the match I was a little nervous but when I got to the court I started playing good. I think he was a little tired or something, he did many mistakes. After I broke him I started playing well. For me this is a dream," he said.
Filed by James Shortt
