“Mentally, something was bothering him,” Former World No.1 reveals the reasons for Novak Djokovic’s huge loss to Rafael Nadal at French Open
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Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic the top seed for the French Open 2022 was the favourite to defend his title in Paris after he had come off a title win in Rome. He had also been ruthless in the first four rounds at Roland Garros. He was also a favorite against Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinal, given Nadal’s injuries and lack of clay-court matches this season.
But, as soon as his quarterfinal match began and Nadal broke Djokovic’s serve, it was visible that Djokovic would have to use every ounce of his strength to get past Nadal. Nadal had come off a brutal fourth-round encounter against Felix Auger Aliassime. It took him five sets to take down the spirited Canadian and one day later, he was again ready to give it his all. He defeated Djokovic 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6.
Former world number 1 and two-time Grand Slam champion, Kafelnikov Yevgeny talked about the night session saying: “From the first point, looking at Rafa’s body language, you could tell that Novak would need not 100%, but 150% of his abilities to be able to win. Nadal was sharp and ready to battle”
There was also some debate about which condition favors which player, Nadal had asked for the day match and Djokovic was okay with playing a night match. Yevgeny said: “I don’t know why everybody were saying that night conditions favor Novak. Nadal could hit the ball in his sweet zone, the crowd was on his side and with the way Djokovic is playing now, he would like quicker conditions.”
Kafelnikov Yevgeny believes something was bothering Novak Djokovic.
Novak Djokovic had not lost a set in his Italian Open campaign which led to the quarterfinal in French Open 2022, but something was different in his match against Nadal. Yevgeny said:
“You could see that something was bothering Djokovic. Physically he was running and covering the court as he always does, but mentally… Perhaps because the whole stadium was supporting Rafa. That troubled Novak, but Nadal is always the crowd favorite in Paris.”
Though this assessment might not be accurate because Djokovic enjoys proving people wrong. It might have been because he didn’t hope Nadal to come out so aggressive and flawless. Yevgeny added: “I think that Novak maybe relaxed a bit too early in the fourth set, he thought that he had already done what was needed to get into a 5th. When Nadal broke, he gave absolutely everything to finish in four because he knows Djokovic is a great fighter.”
With the convincing quarterfinal victory, Nadal has become a favourite to win his fourteenth title in Paris. Yevgeny said: “As much as I like Sascha Zverev, I don’t think he has a chance. Believe it or not, Ruud is the only one who can trouble Rafa. But it’s Rafa’s tournament to lose and when we get to the later stages, when he smells the opportunity, he plays even better.”
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Prateek Sinha
(365 Articles Published)