Rafael Nadal and Karen Khachanov are going to face off in Abu Dhabi for a place in the final on Friday.
Rafa has just ended the season at the top spot of the rankings. That feat was possible after a fantastic second part of the year after Rafa won the Rogers Cup and a sensational US Open title. On the other side, Khachanov didn’t have a smashing 2019 as it was expected after he won the title in Bercy back in 2018. However, the Russian has the tennis to hurt anyone.
In the other semifinal, Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas will lock horns in a match that will have a lot of meanings for the young greek that aims at disrupting the dominance of the big3 in 2020.
Head to head Rafael Nadal vs. Karen Khachanov
Rafael Nadal and Karen Khachanov played each other 7 times. The head to head is 7-0 for Nadal.
Besides the recent Davis Cup, the last time that they competed against each other on tour, Rafael Nadal won 7-62 7-62 in the quarter in Indian Wells (BNP Paribas Open) on the 15th of March 2019.
Prediction, odds and live streaming
The pick for Tennis Tonic is Nadal who should win in 2 sets.
As per the initial odds, Nadal is the pick to win this match.
Nadal -> 1.22
Khachanov -> 4.00
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Rafael Nadal’s ranking and performance in 2019
Currently ranked no.1, Nadal played his last match on the 15th of November when he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-74 6-4 7-5 in the round robin in London.
This season the Spaniard has a 52-7 win-loss record. Rafael has won 4 titles in 2019 in Rome, at the French Open, in Montreal and at the U.S. Open. Rafael was the finalist at the Australian Open.
Karen Khachanov’s ranking and performance in 2019
Now ranked no.17, the Russian played his last match on the 29th of October when he was defeated by Jan-Lennard Struff 7-65 3-6 7-5 in the 2nd round in Paris.
Karen Khachanov’s best achievement of the current year was reaching the semi-finals in Montreal and Beijing.
Novak Djokovic’s ranking and performance in 2019
Currently the world no.2, Novak played his last match on the 14th of November when he had to bow to Roger Federer 6-4 6-3 in the round robin in London.
This year the Serbian has a 54-11 win-loss record. Djokovic clinched 5 titles in 2019 at the Australian Open, in Madrid, in Wimbledon, in Tokyo and in Paris. Novak was the runner-up in Rome.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’s ranking and performance in 2019
Currently the world no.6, Tsitsipas played his last match on the 17th of November when he defeated Dominic Thiem 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London to win his 4th career title.
At the moment, this season Tsitsipas has a 53-25 win-loss record. The Greek clinched 3 titles in 2019 in Marseille, in Estoril and in London. Tsitsipas was the finalist in Dubai, in Madrid and in Beijing.
Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas played each other 4 times. The head to head is 2-2.
The last time that they played each other, Rafael Nadal won 6-1 6-2 in the quarter in Paris (BNP Paribas Masters) on the 1st of November 2019.
Here the highlights.
Rafael Nadal, Karen Khachanov, Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas |
| Embed from Getty Images |
