NOVAK DJOKOVIC & RAFAEL NADAL: THE RIVALRY

Written by: Staff on 8th June 2012

NOVAK DJOKOVIC & RAFAEL NADAL: THE RIVALRY

epa03254700 Rafael Nadal of Spain returns to David Ferrer of Spain during their semi final match for the French Open tennis tournament at Roland Garros in Paris, France, 08 June 2012. EPA/STEPHANE REIX |

(Original Story: http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/Rivalries/Nadal-Djokovic-Rivalry.aspx)

Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will meet for the 33rd time on Sunday, 10 June, 2012 in an historic Roland Garros final. World No. 1 Djokovic will be looking to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slam championship titles, while No. 2-ranked Nadal is bidding to capture a record seventh trophy on Parisian clay.

Djokovic has won their past three matches in major championship finals (2011 Wimbledon, 2011 US Open and 2012 Australian Open). Nadal has won their past two clay-court final meetings at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters in April and the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome. Nadal leads Djokovic 18-14 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series.

The Spaniard holds marks of 11-2 on clay and 2-1 on grass, while Djokovic leads 11-5 on hard courts.

Here is a history of the duo’s 32 career meetings, beginning with their most recent encounter in Rome on 21 May, 2012.

2012 Internazionali BNL d’Italia Final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000, Rome, clay, Nadal d. Djokovic 75 63

The pair contested the final at the Foro Italico for the third time, with Nadal coming out on top to avenge the defeat he had suffered at Djokovic’s hands a year earlier. With the final rained off on Sunday, it was below brighter skies on Monday that the pair took to court. Djokovic was under immediate pressure from Nadal. The Serb, who had beaten Roger Federer in the semi-finals, saved two break points in his opening service game before Nadal converted his fourth opportunity to lead 3-2. Djokovic immediately recovered the service break, but was broken by Nadal again in the 11th game, after a scintillating exchange at the net, and the Spaniard sealed the opener. Nadal was quick to capitalise on his momentum, taking advantage of an increased unforced error count by Djokovic and dominating from the baseline as he broke in the first game of the second set. Djokovic squandered four break back points in the following game, and another in the fourth game, before surrendering the match in the ninth game after two hours and 20 minutes with his fourth double fault.

2012 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters Final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000, Monte-Carlo, clay, Nadal d. Djokovic 63 61

Second-ranked Rafael Nadal ended a seven-match losing streak to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, dropping just four games to win his eighth straight title in Monte-Carlo. The Spaniard converted five breaks and won 85 per cent of his first serve points to seal the final victory in 79 minutes. He did not drop a set during the tournament.

2012 Australian Open Final, Grand Slam, Melbourne, hard, Djokovic d. Nadal 57 64 62 67(5) 75

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic extended his winning streak to seven straight matches over No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam championship final on record over five hours and 53 minutes. It surpassed the previous record of four hours and 54 minutes when Mats Wilander defeated Ivan Lendl at the 1988 US Open. In a pulsating contest on Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Djokovic rallied from a 2-4 deficit in the fifth set, to fight back and claim a dramatic victory. He continued to narrow the gap in his FedEx ATP Head2Head series with the Spaniard to 14-16. Nadal had never previously lost a Grand Slam final after winning the first set.

2011 US Open Final, Grand Slam, New York, hard, Djokovic d. Nadal 62 64 67(3) 61

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic claimed his third Grand Slam title of the season and his first at the US Open when he defeated defending champion Rafael Nadal 6-2, 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-1 in a rematch of the 2010 final. With the victory, Djokovic improved to a 6-0 mark against the Spaniard in finals this season. The pair showed what was in store for the final, with their hard-hitting rallies averaging 10 strokes in the opening game. In both the first two sets Nadal led by a break of serve, and both times Djokovic came roaring back, putting Nadal under constant pressure with his retrieval skills on the baseline and his clever use of the angles, drawing the errors from the Spaniard’s racquet. Ten-time major champion Nadal showed his mettle in the third set, winning it in a tie-break after Djokovic had served for the match at 6-5. However, the Spaniard could not maintain his high level and with both men tiring in the intense contest, it was Nadal whose resistance broke down first and Djokovic broke serve twice to claim victory in four hours and nine minutes. The 24 year old became the sixth man in the Open Era to win three major titles in the same season.

2011 Wimbledon Final, Grand Slam, London, grass, Djokovic d. Nadal 64 61 16 63

The current World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, the 2008 and 2010 titlist, met the soon-to-be No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final. For two sets, Djokovic was superb hitting 22 winners past Nadal, who was unable to hit top form in lengthy baseline rallies. But Nadal hasn’t won 20 straight matches at the All England Club for nothing. The top seed battled back to win the third set to raise hopes of a first two-sets-to-love comeback in a Wimbledon final since 1927, when Henri Cochet defeated Bill Tilden. Both players exchanged breaks of serve at the start of the fourth set, before Djokovic regained control to complete a 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 victory in two hours and 28 minutes of play to lift his third Grand Slam championship title. It capped a dream fortnight for the Serbian, who will become No. 1 in the South African Airways 2011 ATP Rankings on 4 July.

2011 Internazionali BNL d’Italia Final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000, Rome, clay, Djokovic d. Nadal 64 64

One day after a thrilling semi-final win over Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic defeated defending champion Rafael Nadal for a second consecutive Sunday in a clay-court ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final. The Serbian broke the World No. 1 four times – including the final games of the first and second sets – to become just the second player (Davydenko) to record four straight victories against the Spaniard. He also became the first player to win four Masters 1000 titles in one season since Nadal and Roger Federer claimed four apiece in 2005. On Saturday evening, Djokovic had come within two points of defeat before rallying to defeat Murray in a third-set tie-break. His streak of 39 successive tour-level victories following the Rome final was the sixth-longest winning streak in the Open Era.

2011 Sony Ericsson Open Final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000, Miami, hard, Djokovic d. Nadal 46 63 76(4)

In one of the most electrifying men’s singles finals in Sony Ericsson Open history, Novak Djokovic defeated World No. 1 Rafael Nadal for the second consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event after winning at Indian Wells two weeks earlier, upending the Spaniard 4-6, 6-3, 7-6(4) to win his second Miami title. With the win, he improved to 24-0 on the season and increased his overall streak to 26 wins in a row, dating back to December’s Davis Cup Final. Djokovic became the first player since Roger Federer in 2006 to win both Indian Wells and Miami in the same year, a feat that’s been achieved eight times on the men’s side.

2011 BNP Paribas Open Final, ATP World Tour Masters 1000, Indian Wells, hard, Djokovic d. Nadal 46 63 62

Novak Djokovic just cannot stop winning. The Serb extended his unbeaten run to 20 matches as he came from a set down to defeat World No. 1 Rafael Nadal 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in a gripping finale. The 23-year-old Djokovic has not lost a match since falling to Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals last November. “I don’t think anybody is unbeatable. I do have the best period of my life on the tennis court, but nobody is invincible,” he said. “Still you are just trying to play your best in each match you’re playing.” Victory marked Djokovic’s 21st tour-level title and his sixth ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown. A day earlier, in a semi-final clash that also had the No. 2 South African Airways 2011 ATP Ranking on the line, Djokovic had defeated Federer, making him the third player to beat Nadal and Federer in the same tournament on two occasions, joining Nikolay Davydenko and David Nalbandian. He first defeated the duo in back-to-back matches at the 2007 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event in Montreal.

Topics: 10sballs.com, French Open 2012, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Roland Garros