Novak Djokovic Opens Up on Rivalry with Rafael Nadal: “I’ve Seen Him More than my Mother”

Novak Djokovic has admitted that he and Rafael Nadal never became friends but they met each other very much on tour. Both players have a lot of respect for each other on tour and are part of the famous Big 3, which consists of Djokovic, Nadal, and Roger Federer.

The three tennis stars dominated the men’s circuit for a good part of the last two decades, with each of them winning at least 20 Grand Slam titles. However, Federer was the first to retire among the three in 2022, finishing his career with 20 major titles and 103 tour-level crowns. He was the first player in the men’s circuit to win more than 15 Grand Slam titles.

Also, Nadal became the first player to win 22 Grand Slams; fourteen of those titles came at Roland Garros, which is why he is known as the King of Clay. He retired last year at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga. Djokovic, who is the only player out of Big 3 that is yet to hang up his racket; and has done so to overtake Nadal on the list of most Grand Slams with 24.

Meanwhile, Djokovic and Nadal met each other 60 times on the court, a rivalry that made both players get better in their games. Djokovic had a slight advantage in their head-to-head record, winning 31 and losing 29 to Nadal. Their first-ever meeting came at the quarter-finals of the 2006 French Open, with their last coming at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

During an interview with Corriere della Sera, Djokovic revealed some interesting details about his rivalry with Nadal. The 38-year-old noted that at the beginning of the rivalry on tour, they had dinner together and that the Spaniard became a part of his life for the next 15 years on tour:

Having never been enemies: Nadal is only a year older than me; we are both Geminis. At the beginning, we even had dinner together twice, but even with him, friendship is impossible. I have always respected and admired him a lot. Thanks to him and Federer, I grew and became who I am. This will unite us forever, so I am very grateful to them. Nadal is part of my life; in the last 15 years, I have seen him more than my mother. We have never been friends.

Nadal, Djokovic, and Federer were seen together at the French Open during the Spaniard’s farewell ceremony in May. Federer was last spotted at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where Djokovic reached the semi-finals before losing to eventual champion Valentin Vacherot.

Novak Djokovic admits it will be difficult for him to compete with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner

Novak Djokovic has found it difficult to compete with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner in the past two seasons. The Serbian legend was brilliant in Grand Slam tournaments this season, reaching the semi-finals of all four major events, but failed to get past Sinner or Alcaraz on three occasions.

This season was the first in his career since 2017 that Djokovic failed to reach the final of any Grand Slam. During the aforementioned interview, he revealed that it will be difficult to compete against Sinner and Alcaraz in Grand Slam tournaments:

I can only do what I can. It will be very difficult for me in the future to overcome the Sinner and Alcaraz obstacle in the best-of-five tournaments, in the Grand Slams. I think I have more chances in the best-of-three, but in the best-of-five, it’s complicated. I won’t give up on the Grand Slams in that sense. I will continue to fight and try to reach the final and fight for at least another trophy.

Djokovic was the favorite to win his 101st tour-level title at the Shanghai Masters after Sinner was forced to retire from his clash in the third round. But the 38-year-old failed to win the title after crashing out in the semi-finals. He will be competing at the Six Kings Slam exhibition tournament in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Also Read: Nick Kyrgios Gives Updates on Whether He Will Compete at the 2026 Australian Open

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