Borna Coric still perfectly remembers his first meeting versus Rafael Nadal as today he is dreaming of one another big performance versus the Spaniard. In 2014, a 17-year-old Coric stunned Nadal 6-2 7-6 (4) in Basel. In his first meeting versus one of the greatest players in tennis history, Coric ended on the winning side.

“It was a full stadium for our quarter-final. I remember I was just enjoying it. I was super happy. I was like a kid in a candy store,” Coric told the ATP website. “It just felt good. I was in the moment, I was living my dream”.

Today, Coric and Nadal will clash for the fifth time in Cincinnati. “I love those moments,” Coric said. “I love the big stages”.

Coric on how he is approaching the Nadal match

On Tuesday, Coric defeated Lorenzo Musetti in his Cincinnati opener, while Nadal had a first round bye.

“[I will play] without any pressure. I just get to enjoy it even more now because I didn’t have those kind of matches and the competition in the past two years and I did miss that. I just get to enjoy it even more than when I was 17 or 18,” Coric said.

“Since I was out now playing Challengers and all that, I just get to enjoy it even more now.” After being out for 10 months, Coric returned to action in March. Coric is now the 152nd-ranked player in the world and he has yet to regain his top tennis.

“It’s never easy to come back up after a big injury,” Coric said. “I was out for one year and it’s never easy to come back and play good tennis so every win you can get is hugely important also for my confidence and also for my ranking as my ranking is not there yet where I want it to be”. It remains to be seen if Coric can shock Nadal today in Cincinnati.