21:23
Nadal 2-1 Djokovic
This is now much better for the world number one. He rushes through his service game relatively quickly, which he crowns with an ace.
21:20
Nadal 2-0 Djokovic
Now Nadal can try his serve for the first time. Again, things get tight here. After a good return from the Serb it’s 30 all, then Rafa follows up with a forehand winner and a winner at the net from an opponent’s stop. Break confirmed.
21:14
Nadal 1-0 Djokovic
It’s only the first game – and we’re seeing damn good tennis! Nadal unpacks a weak lob, but reacts brilliantly to Nole’s backhand cross at the net and sends the ball into the open court. Breakball! This time Djokovic tries the stop, then overwhelms Nadal and benefits from his failed backwards overhead volley. Because the Belgrade sends a backhand too long without needing to, there is the second breakball. A backhand longline forces the Mallorcan to make a mistake, which in turn responds with a crisp forehand down the line. The Djoker is too short – break chance number three. This time Djokovic just got stuck on the edge of the net with his backhand. Break – after more than ten minutes of play.
21:09
Nadal 0-0 Djokovic
And the second rally is fantastic. The Spaniard sends the Serbs around the court with extremely powerful forehand shots. He again defends himself brilliantly until, out of necessity, stroke 22 only rushes into the net. Nole countered with a forehand winner from the middle of the field, but then Nadal again unpacked a fine winning shot from the baseline. And because Nadal caught his opponent on the wrong foot at 30:40 from his point of view as a result of a net edge hit by Djokovic with the forehand, it’s about a debut.
21:04
Nadal 0-0 Djokovic
Let’s go, Djoker serves first. Nadal whips a very simple forehand from the half-field behind the baseline.
20:48
Nadal vs. Djokovic – there was no duel more often
The two tennis giants met 58 times, no other match was played more often. The Serb won 30 of these games, and Nadal was victorious 28 times. Of course, the statistics don’t matter for today. However, another chapter is guaranteed to be added to it.
20:42
Djokovic – the way to the round of 8
In contrast to his opponent, the Djoker didn’t have to give up a set today. Against Yoshihito Nishioka (6:3, 6:1, 6:0), Alex Molcan (6:2, 6:3, 7:6), Aljaz Bedene (6:3, 6:3, 6:2) and last He dominated Diego Schwartzman (6:1, 6:3, 6:3) from start to finish. Of course, the most difficult conceivable task is now waiting with Nadal – only: The Serb wants to catch up with the Manacor bull again when it comes to Grand Slam victories. And he only showed in last year’s semifinals that he can beat him in Roland Garros.
20:36
Djokovic – back at the top of the world
Djokovic’s year didn’t always go smoothly either – on the contrary. Excluded from the Australian Open, he failed early in February in Dubai (against Jiri Vesely). The comeback on clay was also initially disappointing: in Monte Carlo (against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the second round) he was eliminated straight away. But then he gradually increased. In Belgrade (final defeat against Andrey Rublev) and in Madrid (semi-final defeat against Carlos Alcaraz) he improved, in Rome he even won the title (clear two-set win against Stefanos Tsitsipas).
20:32
Nadal – the way to the round of 8
At first everything went smoothly for the Mallorquin at his absolute favorite tournament. The 13-time trophy winner beat back-to-back Jordan Thompson (6-2, 6-2, 6-2), Corentin Moutet (6-3, 6-1, 6-4) and Botic van de Zandschulp (6-3, 6-6). 2, 6:4) smoothly in three sentences. Only in the fourth round was he really challenged. In the end he had to go the full distance against Felix Auger Alisassime (3:6, 6:3, 6:2, 3:6, 6:3), but still got the upper hand. A first sign of declining performance – or a much-needed test to reach a new level of performance?
20:28
Nadal – Is he disabled?
It’s still a bit unclear how fit the record Grand Slam winner Nadal is at the moment. After his long injury break, he returned to the tour a few weeks ago. However, in both Madrid (against Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals) and in Rome (against Denis Shapovalov in the third round), he was eliminated relatively early on his favorite clay court surface. The preparation for Roland Garros was not ideal.
20:17
Hi!
Hello and welcome to the quarterfinals of the French Open! In the absolute top duel, Rafael Nadal faces Novak Djokovic. The match between the two finalists from last year begins at around 8:45 p.m.