“Share the spotlight,” Mats Wilander hoping Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal remain tied at 22 Majors each
Mats Wilander believes doubts will creep into Novak Djokovic if Rafael Nadal gets to 23 in French Open.
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Mats Wilander, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal
The Swedish seven-time Grandslam champion and Eurosport commentator Mats Wilander has his say on the Grand Slam race between the tennis Greats Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic. According to him, the tennis world will more likely see them tied at 22 rather than one of them dominating with 25 or 26 Grand Slam titles alone.
As Wilander said, “We can’t imagine how Nadal or Djokovic feel about being tied at 22 Majors. Now Novak is more relaxed after winning in Australia and matching Nadal. Because if they both end up tied with 22, great for me. I think both would prefer to share the spotlight and not take Federer out of the equation. I think we don’t want one of the two to run away with 25 or 26 Grand Slams.”
He also believes that if Rafael Nadal gets his 23rd in the French Open, Novak Djokovic will be doubting himself whether he can beat young guys like Carlos Alcaraz in the future.
As in his words, “If Nadal were to get 23 at Roland-Garros, maybe Nole’s doubts would creep back in, and questions would return as to whether he can beat the youngsters like Alcaraz. But at the moment I don’t think they’re thinking about it.”
Also Read: Novak Djokovic’s ban from entering the USA is a blessing in disguise believes Mats Wilander
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have never played in the same major having an equal number of Grand Slams
The 22-time Grand Slam champions Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will be playing in this year’s French Open with the same number of Grand Slam titles for the first time together in a major in their career. This is only the second time in their careers that both are at par on the number of Grand Slam titles. The first time it happened was at Wimbledon 2021 when the Serbian won his 20th Grand Slam and equaled both Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Since Rafael Nadal was not able to play in the following US Open 2021 due to a foot injury and the Serbian was not allowed to play in the Australian Open 2022, the chance of both meeting in the same major with the same number of Grand Slams never happened.
Now with Djokovic looking to get the lead in the slam race for the first time in his career and the Spanish superstar is expected to be back before the French Open 2023 after the hip injury sustained during the Australian Open 2023, this year’s showdown in the Parisian clay is hyped up like never before.
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