Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev are all battling in the current ATP Finals. In the past, the final of the season’s finale was played with a best-of-5 format. However, that has been changed following a best-of-3 scoreline.
There is an ongoing talk about if also the slams should follow a best-of-3 format. While many prefer keeping the current format, some others like Novak Djokovic want best-of-3 matches in majors.
Djokovic and Medvedev for best of 3
During a recent press conference, Novak revealed:
“I’m more of a proponent for two out of three matches everywhere. Even though the Grand Slams have a long tradition and history. I am not sure if there is a chance to change that. But yeah, I am a proponent for best of three matches,” said Djokovic.
Novak also added that the tennis season is extremely long to add:
“We have the longest season of all sports. Every week from January 1st to the end of November there is a tournament somewhere.”
Medvedev agrees with Djokovic to say:
“If you ask me, I would change it to three sets. But I know that this opinion isn’t very popular.”
Nadal and Zverev for best of 5
Rafa is a man that loves tradition, and he also interprets the sport in a rather muscular way. For this reason, the Spanish sensation completely disagrees with people that want to change the slam format to say:
“I am totally against that [best of 5] in the Grand Slams. As we have a day off between games, we must keep that fundamental part of the history of our sport.”
Also Sascha is for keeping the slam format intact to say:
“We shouldn’t change that. It is part of the tennis history. It should stay like this forever.“
"I don't see a reason why we should play best-of-five" 🧐
Nadal & Djokovic give their thoughts on whether tennis should stick with tradition or embrace a new format…#NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/myEa0dOIUt
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) November 16, 2020
Rafael Nadal in 2020
Currently the world no.2, the Spaniard played his last match on the 15th of November when he overcame Andrey Rublev 6-3 6-4 in the round-robin in the Nitto ATP Finals.
This season Nadal has a composed 26-5 win-loss record. Rafael has won 2 titles in 2020 in Acapulco and at the French Open.
Novak Djokovic in 2020
Ranked no.1, Djokovic played his last match on the 16th of November when he beat Diego Schwartzman 6-3 6-2 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals.
This season Djokovic has a compiled 40-3 match record. The Serbian conquered 4 titles in 2020 at the Australian Open, in Dubai, in New York and in Rome. Djokovic got to the final at the French Open.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic played each other 56 times. The head to head is 29-27 for Djokovic. The last time that they locked horns, Rafael Nadal won 6-0 6-2 7-5 in the final in Paris (French Open) on the 11th of October 2020.
In the following video you can watch the highlights.
Alexander Zverev in 2020
Now the world no.7, Zverev played his last contest on the 8th of November when he capitulated to Daniil Medvedev 5-7 6-4 6-1 in the final in Paris.
This year Alexander has a 27-9 match record. The German has won 2 titles in 2020 in Cologne and in Cologne. Alexander was the finalist at the U.S. Open and in Paris.
Daniil Medvedev in 2020
Ranked no.4 (career-high), Medvedev played his last match on the 8th of November when he overcame Alexander Zverev 5-7 6-4 6-1 in the final in Paris to win his 8th career title.
During this season Daniil has a 23-10 win-loss record. Daniil has won 1 title in Paris.
Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev played each other 7 times. The head to head is 5-2 for Zverev. The last time that they squared off, Daniil Medvedev won 5-7 6-4 6-1 in the final in Paris (Rolex Paris Masters) on the 8th of November 2020.
In the video below you can watch the highlights.
| Embed from Getty Images |
