Novak Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal 6-1, 7-5 in the Cincinnati semi-final, 2008 on hard court
Djokovic would go onto win lose the final to Andy Murray. The two would meet again shortly after in the Olympics semi-final in Shanghai, with Nadal winning en route to the title. The result broke Nadal's win streak that included titles in Hamburg, French Open, Queen's Club, Wimbledon and Canada (with wins over Djokovic at the first three)
Djokovic won 59 points, Nadal 43
Serve Stats
Djokovic...
- 1st serve percentage (32/57) 56%
- 1st serve points won (23/32) 72%
- 2nd serve points won (19/25) 76%
- Aces 4, Service Winners 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (16/57) 28%
Nadal....
- 1st serve percentage (26/45) 58%
- 1st serve points won (19/26) 73%
- 2nd serve points won (9/19) 47%
- Aces 2
- Double Faults 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (10/45) 22%
Serve Patterns
Djokovic served...
- to FH 40%
- to BH 60%
Nadal served...
- to FH 39%
- to BH 55%
- to Body 7%
Return Stats
Djokovic made...
- 34 (16 FH, 18 BH), including 5 runaround FHs
- 1 Winner (1 FH)
- 8 Errors, comprising...
- 5 Unforced (3 FH, 2 BH)
- 3 Forced (2 FH, 1 BH)
- Return Rate (34/44) 77%
Nadal made...
- 41 (18 FH, 23 BH), including 2 runaround FHs
- 11 Errors, comprising...
- 4 Unforced (1 FH, 3 BH)
- 7 Forced (2 FH, 5 BH)
- Return Rate (41/57) 72%
Break Points
Djokovic 3/4 (3 games)
Nadal 0/1
Winners (including returns, excluding serves)
Djokovic 14 (8 FH, 3 BH, 3 FHV)
Nadal 8 (4 FH, 1 BH, 1 FHV, 2 BHV)
Djokovic's FHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 5 inside-out (1 return, 1 at net)
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 1 drop shot (a net chord roll over)
Nadal's FHs - 2 cc (1 pass), 2 dtl
- BH - 1 cc
Errors (excluding serves and returns)
Djokovic 25
- 20 Unforced (8 FH, 12 BH)
- 5 Forced (4 BH, 1 FH1/2V)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 50
Nadal 28
- 14 Unforced (5 FH, 8 BH, 1 FHV)
- 14 Forced (13 FH, 1 BH)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 44.3
(Note 1: All 1/2 volleys refer to such shots played at net. 1/2 volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke numbers)
(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)
Net Points & Serve-Volley
Djokovic was 9/11 (82%) at net, with...
- 1/1 forced back
Nadal was...
- 5/7 (71%) at net, including...
- 1/1 serve-volleying, a 1st serve
---
- 0/1 forced back
Match Report
Two part match - Djokovic zones through the first set, but the second is competitive, high quality baseline contest. Court is on quick side but with high bounce
The key stat is an unusual one. Nadal with 13 FH FEs. Most are drawn by Djoko’s FH dtl, which is the most important shot in the match
Putting 13 FH FEs in perspective -
- Djoko has 16 unreturned serves, Nadal 10
- Djoko has 14 winners, Nadal 8
- Nadal has 14 UEs total
- Djoko has 5 FEs, Nadal has just 1 non-FH FE
8/13 are in the second set, which is the important part in final outcome, taking the first set for granted when Djoko’s on fire in many ways, including FH dtl but it doesn’t stand out with everything else firing too
Match long stats are cute. Similar in-counts (Djoko 56%, Nadal 58%) and 3/4 of the types of points are clustered together -
Djoko’s first serve 72%, Djoko’s second serve 76% and Nadal’s first serve at 73%
Nadal’s second serve lags a mile or 2 behind at 47%
47% second serve points won isn’t bad or unusual by a normal standard, but 76% is outrageously good. It doesn’t have much to do with the serve or return shots themselves
Early on, Nadal has a bit of trouble returning the chest-shoulder high second serves and makes a few errors. He gets a grip on the return in second set and returns about his norm. Djoko winning so much is just about his playing superiority
For that matter, Nadal’s done well to be so effective behind his first serve. Its not a troubling one, and Djoko returns comfortably. But that overall figure is twisted by sets. He wins just 6/12 in first set, but 13/14 in second
In first set, Djoko can’t seem to do anything wrong. Dispatches third balls FH inside-out for winners - weak returns and not-strong ones, from well over in ad court and more often, around center line. BH cc’s, BH dtl’s and few FH dtl’s all fire too. And Nadal has some trouble with on the high return
Djoko with 9 winners, forcing 5 errors and just 6 UEs for the set
Nadal has 2 winners, forces 1 error and has 3 UEs
Djoko winning 14 points aggressively, while getting just 3 UEs is clear enough. He just blows Nadal away
Nadal also misses 5/11 second returns, which is out of character. Decent second serving from Djoko, and the height catches Nadal out
In second set, Djoko has 5 winners, forces 9 errors and has 14 UEs
Nadal has 6 winners, forces 4 errors and has 11 UEs
Djoko looks to keep up his zoning to start, but starts missing his would-be winners. Nadal returns more securely. And they play some excellent baseline tennis
Rallies can be divided as tough, with both players being gritty and hard hitting or lively, with lots of moving one another around going on. And Djoko sprinkling in his attempts at point ending shots
As just 5 winners attest, he’s not too successful, but those FH dtl’s keep hard forcing running FH errors
Nadal isn’t too aggressive. He’s tough and efficient. Match long, edges neutral UEs 7-10 against the smartly solid Djoko. Just 2 attacking and winner attempt UEs apiece (Djoko has 6 and 7 respectively). To be aggressive, he goes wider with his usual FH cc’s. They have to wider to trouble Djoko’s whose BH seems comfy in stationary rallies
Djokovic would go onto win lose the final to Andy Murray. The two would meet again shortly after in the Olympics semi-final in Shanghai, with Nadal winning en route to the title. The result broke Nadal's win streak that included titles in Hamburg, French Open, Queen's Club, Wimbledon and Canada (with wins over Djokovic at the first three)
Djokovic won 59 points, Nadal 43
Serve Stats
Djokovic...
- 1st serve percentage (32/57) 56%
- 1st serve points won (23/32) 72%
- 2nd serve points won (19/25) 76%
- Aces 4, Service Winners 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (16/57) 28%
Nadal....
- 1st serve percentage (26/45) 58%
- 1st serve points won (19/26) 73%
- 2nd serve points won (9/19) 47%
- Aces 2
- Double Faults 1
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (10/45) 22%
Serve Patterns
Djokovic served...
- to FH 40%
- to BH 60%
Nadal served...
- to FH 39%
- to BH 55%
- to Body 7%
Return Stats
Djokovic made...
- 34 (16 FH, 18 BH), including 5 runaround FHs
- 1 Winner (1 FH)
- 8 Errors, comprising...
- 5 Unforced (3 FH, 2 BH)
- 3 Forced (2 FH, 1 BH)
- Return Rate (34/44) 77%
Nadal made...
- 41 (18 FH, 23 BH), including 2 runaround FHs
- 11 Errors, comprising...
- 4 Unforced (1 FH, 3 BH)
- 7 Forced (2 FH, 5 BH)
- Return Rate (41/57) 72%
Break Points
Djokovic 3/4 (3 games)
Nadal 0/1
Winners (including returns, excluding serves)
Djokovic 14 (8 FH, 3 BH, 3 FHV)
Nadal 8 (4 FH, 1 BH, 1 FHV, 2 BHV)
Djokovic's FHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 5 inside-out (1 return, 1 at net)
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 1 drop shot (a net chord roll over)
Nadal's FHs - 2 cc (1 pass), 2 dtl
- BH - 1 cc
Errors (excluding serves and returns)
Djokovic 25
- 20 Unforced (8 FH, 12 BH)
- 5 Forced (4 BH, 1 FH1/2V)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 50
Nadal 28
- 14 Unforced (5 FH, 8 BH, 1 FHV)
- 14 Forced (13 FH, 1 BH)
- Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 44.3
(Note 1: All 1/2 volleys refer to such shots played at net. 1/2 volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke numbers)
(Note 2: the Unforced Error Forcefulness Index is an indicator of how aggressive the average UE was. The numbers presented are keyed on 4 categories - 20 defensive, 40 neutral, 50 attacking and 60 winner attempt)
Net Points & Serve-Volley
Djokovic was 9/11 (82%) at net, with...
- 1/1 forced back
Nadal was...
- 5/7 (71%) at net, including...
- 1/1 serve-volleying, a 1st serve
---
- 0/1 forced back
Match Report
Two part match - Djokovic zones through the first set, but the second is competitive, high quality baseline contest. Court is on quick side but with high bounce
The key stat is an unusual one. Nadal with 13 FH FEs. Most are drawn by Djoko’s FH dtl, which is the most important shot in the match
Putting 13 FH FEs in perspective -
- Djoko has 16 unreturned serves, Nadal 10
- Djoko has 14 winners, Nadal 8
- Nadal has 14 UEs total
- Djoko has 5 FEs, Nadal has just 1 non-FH FE
8/13 are in the second set, which is the important part in final outcome, taking the first set for granted when Djoko’s on fire in many ways, including FH dtl but it doesn’t stand out with everything else firing too
Match long stats are cute. Similar in-counts (Djoko 56%, Nadal 58%) and 3/4 of the types of points are clustered together -
Djoko’s first serve 72%, Djoko’s second serve 76% and Nadal’s first serve at 73%
Nadal’s second serve lags a mile or 2 behind at 47%
47% second serve points won isn’t bad or unusual by a normal standard, but 76% is outrageously good. It doesn’t have much to do with the serve or return shots themselves
Early on, Nadal has a bit of trouble returning the chest-shoulder high second serves and makes a few errors. He gets a grip on the return in second set and returns about his norm. Djoko winning so much is just about his playing superiority
For that matter, Nadal’s done well to be so effective behind his first serve. Its not a troubling one, and Djoko returns comfortably. But that overall figure is twisted by sets. He wins just 6/12 in first set, but 13/14 in second
In first set, Djoko can’t seem to do anything wrong. Dispatches third balls FH inside-out for winners - weak returns and not-strong ones, from well over in ad court and more often, around center line. BH cc’s, BH dtl’s and few FH dtl’s all fire too. And Nadal has some trouble with on the high return
Djoko with 9 winners, forcing 5 errors and just 6 UEs for the set
Nadal has 2 winners, forces 1 error and has 3 UEs
Djoko winning 14 points aggressively, while getting just 3 UEs is clear enough. He just blows Nadal away
Nadal also misses 5/11 second returns, which is out of character. Decent second serving from Djoko, and the height catches Nadal out
In second set, Djoko has 5 winners, forces 9 errors and has 14 UEs
Nadal has 6 winners, forces 4 errors and has 11 UEs
Djoko looks to keep up his zoning to start, but starts missing his would-be winners. Nadal returns more securely. And they play some excellent baseline tennis
Rallies can be divided as tough, with both players being gritty and hard hitting or lively, with lots of moving one another around going on. And Djoko sprinkling in his attempts at point ending shots
As just 5 winners attest, he’s not too successful, but those FH dtl’s keep hard forcing running FH errors
Nadal isn’t too aggressive. He’s tough and efficient. Match long, edges neutral UEs 7-10 against the smartly solid Djoko. Just 2 attacking and winner attempt UEs apiece (Djoko has 6 and 7 respectively). To be aggressive, he goes wider with his usual FH cc’s. They have to wider to trouble Djoko’s whose BH seems comfy in stationary rallies