Rafael Nadal is in the dark about how he will do on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros against rival Novak Djokovic. The thirteen-time winner in Paris does not have too high expectations of himself due to his physical condition.
After his lost final at Indian Wells in March, 35-year-old Nadal was out of action for a month due to a rib injury and made his comeback in Madrid in May. A week later at the Masters tournament in Rome, Nadal lost in part to a foot injury from Denis Shapovalov and it was questionable whether he would be able to participate in Paris at all.
“I know my situation and I accept it,” said 35-year-old Nadal on Sunday after his hard-fought win over Felix Auger-Aliassime. “You won’t hear me complaining, because I’m in the quarterfinals of Roland Garros. 2.5 weeks ago I didn’t even know if I could be here. So I especially enjoy being here again.”
Until Sunday, Nadal apparently went for his favorite tournament without any problems. The number five in the world settled without a set loss with Jordan Thompson, Corentin Moutet and Botic van de Zandschulp, but he got through the eye of the needle against Auger-Aliassime.
The gravel king escaped his fourth defeat at Roland Garros in a five-setter. Djokovic (two wins) and Robin Söderling are still the only players to ever beat Nadal at the Grand Slam tournament in Paris. In 2016, he left the tournament after the second round with an injury.
Rafael Nadal escaped unscathed against Félix Auger-Alliasime.
Rafael Nadal escaped unscathed against Félix Auger-Alliasime.
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‘Novak will be confident’
Unlike Nadal, Djokovic is still without a set loss on the French clay. After a turbulent start to his season, the world number one seems to be back at his usual level and is aiming for his 21st Grand Slam title in Paris, which would equal record holder Nadal.
The last meeting between the two tennis legends dates back to last year, when Djokovic was too strong in the semi-finals of Roland Garros. The two previous encounters were also on clay and were in favor of Nadal.
“I haven’t been able to test against Novak for a while. I haven’t played these big games in the past three months anyway, so it will be a big challenge for me. He has won his last nine games and is now without a set loss, so he will be confident,” said Nadal.
It is not yet known what time the cracker between Nadal and Djokovic will start. The match is normally played at Court Philippe-Chatrier in the evening.
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