ATP Masters Rome: Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic - Ready for the French Open
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic delivered an epic final at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Rome. And thus also cleared up discussions about their form in view of the upcoming French Open.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: May 17, 2021, 03:37 pm
History repeats itself. Especially with those two men who were supposed to agree on the title among themselves in the Foro Italico yesterday, Sunday. Number one and number three in the men's tennis world, the 37-time Grand Slam winners Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
History repeats itself because the two exceptional talents in Rome managed to further underpin their impressive dominance in the Italian capital. History was also repeated because Nadal and Djokovic again managed to slowly but surely find their absolute top form just before a Grand Slam.
Nadal and Djokovic are looking for top form
Because of this, at the start of the clay court season, little was seen of both men. Nadal surprisingly fails in the Monte Carlo quarter-finals to Andrey Rublev, Djokovic even had to cancel the sails in Monaco in the second round. The Spanish clay court king subsequently won his tenth Barcelona title, but suffered the next setback in Madrid with his next quarter-final defeat.
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Same game at Djokovic: The Serb disappointed in the home tournament with a semi-final defeat against whiz kid Karatsev - and subsequently even skipped the ATP Masters 1000 event in Madrid. Only to return to Rome days later - to the place where he won the title last year - and to bring really strong fighting performances to the red ashes again, especially against Stefanos Tsitsipas and Lorenzo Sonego.
... and find them in Rome
The Serbian reported accordingly positive after his final defeat against the clay court king Nadal: "Yesterday I played great and I think I played at a high level today too, but unfortunately Nadal was the better player in the crucial moments of the match. Overall it was but three hours of tennis at the highest level, " said Djokovic.
It was an excellent preparation for the French Open, there was no bigger challenge in tennis than facing Nadal in a clay court final. The great triumphator, who looks back on a "great week" in Rome, also hits the same line. "I've been through a lot during the week. Some positive moments, some great moments, some moments of happiness, moments of suffering. In the end, I think I played a very solid week of tennis," said the Spaniard.
Nadal completes "la decima"
For Nadal a week that should be crowned with the tenth title in the Foro Italico. A big goal, as Nadal emphasized: "It was one of the first big titles I won in my career. After getting 10 titles in Roland Garros, 10 in Monte Carlo and 10 in Barcelona, I really got into this one tenth in Rome. The trophy means a lot to me, " said the Mallorcan.
Nadal was also able to see an improvement in his game this week in Rome, an improvement that the 34-year-old now wants to drive forward in the final days before the French Open: "Paris is of course always a very special place for me. Everyone knows that it is probably the most important place in my tennis career. Now I need some rest before I start working again, but I think that I will be able to confirm that I am on the right track. " So that history could also repeat itself on the Bois de Bolougne.