By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday October 10, 2020
In one of the strangest seasons in modern tennis history, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have done their part to restore some normalcy in Paris. The pair—ever reliable at the Grand Slams—will meet for the 56th time on Sunday to decide the 2020 Roland Garros champion.
Feels like old times, right?
Let’s dip inside the matchup as we look forward to a stunning finally to the 2020 Grand Slam season.
Some Numbers
Head to Head: Djokovic leads 29-26
At Roland Garros: Nadal leads 6-1
Last meeting at Roland Garros: Djokovic in straight sets, 2015 quarterfinals
Career Grand Slam final appearances: Nadal 28, Djokovic 27
Roland Garros records: Nadal 99-2, Djokovic 74-14
Number of Grand Slam titles won since turning 30: Nadal-5, Djokovic-5 (tied for most all-time)
Nadal vs. Djokovic at Grand Slams: Nadal leads 9-6
Nadal vs. Djokovic in Grand Slam finals: Tied 4-4
Who’s Hot?
The straight answer is that both Djokovic and Nadal are hot coming in. And they’ve both had a lot to overcome to get there. For Djokovic, it was a turbulent, controversial spring and summer that he needed to leave in his wake. He has done that smoothly in Paris, reverting to his A game and putting the nightmare scenario that occurred at the US Open further back in the rearview mirror.
Nadal’s mission was to overcome his shortest clay-court season ever (just three matches, one of which was a shock loss to Diego Schwartzman in Rome), and conditions in Paris that to him must seem like playing tennis on the North Pole.
But coming in severely undercooked, and playing in heavy conditions and temperatures that are typically below 60 degrees, has not stopped the Spaniard from winning all six of his matches in straight sets.
We can conclude that both players are carrying solid form into Sunday’s final. And both seem intent on taking it up one more level ahead of their 56th career meeting.
What’s at stake? Oh, just EVERYTHING!
For Nadal, the chance to equal Roger Federer at 20 Grand Slam singles titles has arrived. It has been a quest for Nadal—whether he admits it or not—for, well, forever. Ever since Roger won his first Wimbledon in 2003, Rafa’s never been on equal footing with Federer in terms of major titles won, even though he’s surpassed Federer in their head-to-head and been the better player in their rivalry for many years. So here is a chance to finally tie him, and to become the second man in history to claim 20 major singles titles. Better yet, Nadal can do it in his house, on Court Philippe Chatrier in Paris, on his surface, red clay.
Djokovic is bidding for his own slice of history as well. He can close to within one major title of Nadal with a victory in Sunday’s final, and he can become the first man in the Open Era to win all four majors not once—but twice. That’s a unique feat that, if accomplished, would be a testament to the versatility of Djokovic’s all-court game.
We’ve all known that he’s the second-best clay-court player of his generation, and he owns seven wins over Nadal on clay already. But if he is able to defeat Nadal on Sunday, and become the only man to own two wins over the Spaniard on the terre battue in Paris, and the only man to defeat him in a Roland Garros final, it will do wonders for his legacy.
How will conditions affect the final?
How much will it matter that the conditions are preferable to Djokovic and not to Nadal?
The Serb has made no mistake about the fact that he likes the heavy, low-bouncing clay, and he’s shown his ability to thrive in those aforementioned conditions throughout the tournament, by employing the drop shot and using his all-court prowess to finish points at the net. Of course there is the fact that the “deadness” of the courts in the cool conditions will limit the height of the bounce of Nadal’s topspin drives, which also, theoretically works in the World No.1’s favor.
But before we get carried away here let’s make note of the fact that Nadal has performed quite well in conditions that does not consider ideal for his game. He’s made adjustments and, even if his array of weapons is slightly diminished, he’s finding ways to move forward tactically and to impose himself on his opponents.
What they’re saying
Nadal is sanguine after his victory over Diego Schwartzman in the semifinals and he believes that all he needs to do is take one more step and fine-tune his game just a little more to accomplish his 13th major title.
“I can't predict the future, no?” he told reporters on Friday in Paris. “The only thing I know is to play against Novak, I need to play my best. Without playing my best tennis, situation is very difficult. I know that is a court that I have been playing well for such a long time, so that helps. But at the same time he has an amazing record here, too, being in the final rounds almost every single time.
"[Novak] is one of the toughest opponents possible. But I am here to keep trying my best. I like to play in this scenario. I know I have to make a step forward. I think I did one today. But for Sunday is not enough. I need to make another one. That's what I'm looking for. I going to work hard to try to make that happen.
Djokovic, meanwhile, seems to be very confident about his game, even after being pushed to five sets by Stefanos Tsitsipas in Friday’s semifinals. And he sounds like a player that truly believes the conditions are ideal for him to take down the King of Clay.
“We all know that the conditions and the circumstances are obviously different from what we are used to,” he said. “It's going to be interesting to see how his game and my game kind of match up, how it all plays out on Sunday. Depending on what is the temperature as well. That affects a lot the court, whether it's heavy, not bouncing much, slippery, windy. All these things can affect I think both of us mentally and our games.”