Rafael Nadal nonetheless completely remembers his hardest interval in opposition to Novak Djokovic because the report 14-time French Open champion admits the Serb made him return to the drafting board in 2011 and take into consideration the way to finish his dominance of their conferences.
In 2010, Nadal and Djokovic met solely twice and the Spaniard gained each of these clashes, with the final coming on the 2010 ATP Finals. Within the subsequent 14 months, they met seven instances and the Spanish participant didn’t register a single win. All of these seven encounters got here within the ultimate stage of a event – 2011 Indian Wells, 2011 Madrid, 2011 Rome, 2011 Wimbledon, 2011 US Open, and 2012 Australian Open.
Nadal: I misplaced too many instances to Djokovic in 2011… I needed to come again and perceive why
“One yr, I misplaced too many instances with Novak. 2011, I misplaced the ultimate of Indian Wells, ultimate Miami, ultimate Madrid, ultimate Rome, ultimate Wimbledon, and ultimate US Open. After which the subsequent yr, I misplaced the ultimate of Australia. So it is coming again and perceive what is going on on, why I’m not capable of win. As a result of it is just one in opposition to one, makes the issues mentally extra robust, I believe. If you’re on the market, no one can prevent. It is simply you. That is a stupendous factor of our sport too,” the Spanish tennis icon stated throughout his dialog with NFL nice Tom Brady on the E1 Collection in Monte-Carlo Nation Membership.
In April 2012, Nadal lastly snapped his seven-match shedding streak by beating Djokovic 6-3 6-1 within the Monte Carlo Masters ultimate. The Spaniard additionally triumphed of their 2012 Rome and French Open ultimate conferences.
Ultimately, Nadal and Djokovic clashed in opposition to one another for a complete of 60 instances and the Serb gained their head-to-head with a slim 31-29 scoreline. Of their final encounter on the 2024 Paris Olympics, the Serbian tennis large claimed a 6-1 6-4 win.
