Djokovic vs Nadal || The Ultimate Battle

Edition #126

Intro:

What’s looking to be the 60th and maybe final time these two rivals play each other, Nadal and Djokovic are looking forward to playing some tennis.

No. This matchup isn’t as big as Federer vs Nadal, but it’s big. It’s a pretty big deal.

Djokovic has been trending in the wrong direction versus Nadal in his last couple of meetings. Can he prevail at the Olympics? Or will Rafa and his “dream run” through Olympic tennis continue? Read on to find out.

Nadal vs Djokovic

Note here that you probably know, but I’m going to tell you again.

I’m one of the biggest Nadal fans there is. I’m also one of the biggest Djokovic haters there is.

If you’ve never followed tennis, this rivalry is like LeBron vs Steph. Yankees vs Dodgers. Lakers vs Celtics. Nadal vs Djokovic is truly such a big event.

In Djokovic and Nadal’s last 4 meetings, Nadal has won 3. They’ve played at Roland Garros (clay courts) 3 times in this period. The other tournament was the ATP Masters in Rome which also has clay courts. Of course, this isn’t a meeting in a Grand Slam tournament. They’re meeting in the Olympics, so anything can change. With the current history we are looking at, Nadal does have a slight edge in this game. But then again, their last meeting was in 2022 so… does it really have an impact?

When asked after the game about his next match, Nadal said he was the underdog. Djokovic is the current World #2 in the ranking table but is acting as the World #1 in this tournament with Janiik Sinner (the real World #1) not playing. Nadal, who was injured for a while, is currently ranked #161.

Nadal was not happy about the Olympics schedule. Rafa is not only playing singles but is also playing doubles. Before his game on July 28 vs Hungary’s Fucsovics, Nadal wasn’t even sure if he was going to play this singles match because of the schedule. It turns out that Nadal had finished his doubles match late in the night, and then was scheduled to play his singles match in the day session. I mean, what a toll would that put on your body? Especially for a guy who’s 38 years old!

Nadal also discussed his physical state after the match.

“Well, I’m facing my body. As good as I can? It’s not easy, but if there’s a place that you have to give it your all, then it’s here. It was a long match but at the same time, it was a good test. The good thing is, I was able to play at a good level of tennis for a while, so that always gives me hope, and then the negative stuff is I was not able to hold that great level. So let's see tomorrow, another story and another kind of opponent.”

Rafael Nadal

Now a bit about Djokovic. In his last matchup, Djokovic absolutely demolished Matthew Ebden of Australia 2-0. It was 6-0, 6-1. Ebden could only win a total of 21 points. Djokovic had 7 backhand winners and had 24 service winners. In fact, Ebden never got a chance to break Djokovic’s serve. What a dominant performance.

Now. Time to get to game prediction.

With the level Nadal has been playing at in the Olympics this year, it’s very hard not to pick him here. His forehands have been excellent and he’s shown so many flashes of his backhand coming back to life. But, Djokovic is just too good for Nadal and at this age, Djokovic’s play will overpower Nadal.

But, I still believe that Nadal will take the first set in an ultimate thriller that goes to the maximum 3 sets. If you’re in a timezone where you’ll have to wake up pretty early, wake up. Don’t think. Do.

Conclusion:

That’s it for this one and I’ll see you soon.