Serbia’s top-seeded Novak Djokovic triumphed over 14-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal with a 6-1, 6-4 victory at the Paris Olympics, moving into the third round. While Djokovic continues his pursuit of an elusive Olympic gold, Nadal, now limited to the doubles competition with partner Carlos Alcaraz, reflected on his performance and what went wrong during the match.
Djokovic led 6-1, 4-0 before a Nadal comeback attempt saw him briefly level at 4-4. Despite the Spaniard’s efforts, he could not sustain the momentum needed to challenge Djokovic.
In his post-match interview, Nadal candidly assessed his performance: “I was not able to put him in difficult positions. I was not able to have enough quality shots, enough quality of movements. Playing against Novak without creating damage to him and without having the legs of 20 years ago is almost impossible.”
Djokovic, on the other hand, expressed pride in his performance and acknowledged the challenges posed by Nadal. “I was just very proud to be part of this match and… I wanted to do my job on the court and really execute the game plan as much as I possibly can,” Djokovic said. He noted the complexity of the match, adding,
“So almost a perfect match, the 6-1, 4-0. Then things got complicated, I started to hesitate a little bit on my shot, he stepped in, the crowd got involved and for all, it was really anybody’s set, anybody’s game. Just very glad to overcome this incredible challenge.”
Carlos Alcaraz also saw action in the singles, securing a 6-1, 7-6 victory over Dutch opponent Tallon Griekspoor. Eighth-seed Stefanos Tsitsipas advanced to the next round with a dominant 6-1, 6-2 win over Britain’s Daniel Evans.
Rafael Nadal in 2024
Currently the world no.161, Rafael played his last match on the 29th of July when he was overcome by world no.2 Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
At the moment, during this season the Spaniard has a compiled 12-7 win-loss record. Rafael Nadal’s best performance of the present season was reaching the final in Bastad.
Nadal is scheduled to play next at the U.S. Open (U.S. Open). He will start to play the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 26th of August.
Djokovic in Paris, ranking, and results in 2024
WWLWWWWWWW Currently the world no.2, Novak owns an overall 25-7 record in 2024. Novak is competing in Paris where he managed to beat Matthew Ebden 6-0 6-1 and the world no.161 Rafael Nadal 6-1 6-4.
Novak Djokovic will square off with the world no.70 Dominik Koepfer in the 3rd round. Their actual record is 1-0 for Djokovic.
The Serbian got to the final in Wimbledon.
Djokovic won 98 titles in his career: 52 on hard courts, 19 on clay courts, 19 on indoor courts and 8 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Djokovic is scheduled to compete next in Montreal (National Bank Open). He will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 5th of August.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic clashed against each other 60 times. Their actual record is 31-29 for Djokovic. Previously, the last time they played, Novak Djokovic won 6-1 6-4 in the 2nd round in Paris (Olympics) on the 29th of July 2024.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic |
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