[Feliciano Blopez]

Everyone remembers Nadal getting humiliated on Novak's hunting grounds in the AO 2019 final, despite us expecting a blockbuster. He even roasted Tsitsipas along the way in the semis.

This year at RG, we have the opposite picture. Too many think Novak is the favorite and will down Nadal on his own turf. But I think the more likely possibility is Djokovic demolishing Tsitsipas only to get thoroughly beat down in the final.

This sort of thing happened earlier, when Nadal choked AO 2012 with his backhand pass missing the white line by a sniff (unlike Dan Evans, if you know what I mean); a year later, Novak choked RG 2013 when he got too intimate with the net, squandered the break lead in the fifth, and lost.

 

[TheEndIsNear]

Nadal is the favorite no doubt, but I still believe in Novak. And if he does lose it won't be as one-sided as the AO 2019 match was.

 

[YellowBullet]

Never happening. Novak might lose to Nadal in the final, chances are as damn near to 50-50 as they could be, but he's NEVER receiving a beatdown like the one he administered at AO last year.

 

[SetPointDown]

It's possible IMO

 

[Chokehater]

If you can put 2012dal into a time machine and increase the power of the sun so we have the same conditions like in summer, then sure.

 

[Djoker]

Djokovic won't lose badly even in worst case vs Nadal as he knows how to play him even on clay as long as he won't be affected by any serious physical issue in the final.
Past patterns are not important here; Novak wants this title very much, this showed in last matches and all in his interviews.

 

[Tennis9000+]

Inb4 Trollalot reminding us with Rome final where he lost a whole set to a half-dead Djokovic.

 

[Roxitova]

Everyone remembers Nadal getting humiliated on Novak's hunting grounds in the AO 2019 final, despite us expecting a blockbuster. He even roasted Tsitsipas along the way in the semis.

This year at RG, we have the opposite picture. Too many think Novak is the favorite and will down Nadal on his own turf. But I think the more likely possibility is Djokovic demolishing Tsitsipas only to get thoroughly beat down in the final.

This sort of thing happened earlier, when Nadal choked AO 2012 with his backhand pass missing the white line by a sniff (unlike Dan Evans, if you know what I mean); a year later, Novak choked RG 2013 when he got too intimate with the net, squandered the break lead in the fifth, and lost.

Excellent memory of those pivotal moments.
It would be some crazy symmetry if it turned out like you imply ... and I would be highly pleased.

I feel most are overestimating Djok's chances here. He look really dicey.

 

[Why So Serious?]

Big difference is still that this RG isn't played in may, conditions favour Djokovic and a guy like Schwartzman but win or lose if both reach the finals it won't be a beatdown.

 

[Idemo]

Not even looking past stephanos. Bookies are predicting a pretty close match, which many didnt Expect at first.

 

[n00b]

Great comparisons OP. Well it's possible, but that is a price I'm willing to take for another shot at Nadal in the final. It's simply the biggest challenge in sport, hence bigger the potential reward.

 

[dataworf]

Everyone remembers Nadal getting humiliated on Novak's hunting grounds in the AO 2019 final, despite us expecting a blockbuster. He even roasted Tsitsipas along the way in the semis.

This year at RG, we have the opposite picture. Too many think Novak is the favorite and will down Nadal on his own turf. But I think the more likely possibility is Djokovic demolishing Tsitsipas only to get thoroughly beat down in the final.

This sort of thing happened earlier, when Nadal choked AO 2012 with his backhand pass missing the white line by a sniff (unlike Dan Evans, if you know what I mean); a year later, Novak choked RG 2013 when he got too intimate with the net, squandered the break lead in the fifth, and lost.

Nadal will utterly smash Djokovic here.

 

[dataworf]

Inb4 Trollalot reminding us with Rome final where he lost a whole set to a half-dead Djokovic.

Half dead? He was fitter then than he is now lmao. He only played 2 hour matches in Rome. He has played 3hrs 10 mins today likely longer than that v Tsitsipas and its cold so takes longer to recover. Could be a triple bagel handed out by Nadal using your logic.

 

[VamosRafa123]

Its funny to se such quats like "Djokovic knows how to play Rafa on clay"
Still 6-1 against him at RG.

 

[zjtennis]

@VamosRafa123 I mean, RG isn't the only clay tournament, just sayin'.

 

[just1ce]

considering CURRENT form and conditions - no.
But i would love to be wrong

 

[Rafanaticism]

Why are you so confident Djokovic will straight-set Tsitsipas? Makes no sense, the Greek looks confident and has raised his game as the tournament progressed. Djokovic will have his hands full with the Bullshit Greek.

 

[Arrow]

It's actually the same as AO 2019. Nadal will be undercooked for the final, with the next match his first real test. It's even worse when you consider this is only his second tournament after the break, whereas Djokovic has been playing since august. I still don't count Diego and Stef out though.

 

[NADALalot]

Nadal shouldn't have even played that AO, since he wasn't even training properly-
"....because of the things that happened to me in terms of surgery, then what happened in Abu Dhabi, I was not able to work that much the defensive game. I worked a lot on the offensive game, but not that much on the defensive game.
To play against a player like him, playing the way he played tonight, I needed that defensive game to finally have the chance to be offensive, no?"
Rafael Nadal F interview
At the end of 2018, Nadal had ankle surgery and he was told not to practice his defense or retrieving in January, because going 100% would be dangerous for his recovery.
So Nadal attempted to end the points very quickly in all his 2019 AO matches, and that was very doable vs. most players.
But to beat Djokovic you have to set-up the point with defense before you attack, and since Nadal hadn't practiced his defense it was impossible.
Nadal never really got his game back in order until late in the 2019 clay season, and he lost in the Semis of Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid.

 

[NSMv1924]

Nadaltards better hope Tsitsi takes out Novak