“I do not hide from saying it” When Rafael Nadal openly admitted to wants Novak Djokovic to win fewer Grand Slams than him

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have been two of the fiercest competitors in the past decade with both men along with Roger Federer combining to win a total of 63 Grand Slam titles. Nadal has the bigger share with 22 majors followed by Novak on 21 and Federer on 20. Although Federer was the first to reach 20, the other two caught up with him over the years and have now overtaken the Swiss Maestro who is now trailing behind Rafa and Novak for the first time.

Nadal was the second man after Federer to reach the 20-major mark achieving the feat by winning the 2020 French Open. Novak was on 17 majors when Nadal joined Federer and took a big jump over the Serb. Djokovic however matched two of his biggest rivlas during the 2021 season by winning the first 3 majors of the season to match their tally of 20 Grand Slam titles. He had a golden chance to win his 21st at the 2021 US Open but he lost in the finals in straight-sets in an agonising end to a brilliant Grand Slam season for him.

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“It is a purely professional issue”: Rafael Nadal on wanting more majors

While Djokovic has openly spoken of wanting more majors than anybody, Nadal also made similar statements in 2020 during his visit to Mexico for the 2020 Acapulco Open which he won. Nadal was asked about Djokovic’s win in the 2020 Australian Open where he defeated Dominic Thiem in the finals to win his 8th title in Melbourne Park.

“I have a good relationship with Dominic as I also have with Djokovic. But the reality is that if you ask me if I prefer Djokovic to have more ‘Grand Slam’ than me, well, I answer no. Therefore, if I have to choose to win one or the other, I choose the other. It is a purely professional issue and I do not hide from saying that because I think if you ask Novak who prefers to win Roland Garros, he’ll tell you Dominic. This is the reality of the competition and it’s not going against anyone or a strange motive,” Nadal had said.

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