Rafael Nadal beat Novak Djokovic 3-6, 6-1, 4-1 retired in the Wimbledon semi-final, 2007 on grass
Nadal would go onto lose the final to Roger Federer for second year in a row. This was Djokovic’s first semi-final showing a the event. Nadal had recently won the French Open, beating Djokovic en route to the title. The two would go onto contest the 2011 final, with Djokovic winning
Nadal won 71 points, Djokovic 61
Serve Stats
Nadal...
- 1st serve percentage (32/55) 58%
- 1st serve points won (25/32) 78%
- 2nd serve points won (13/23) 57%
- Ace 4
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (21/55) 38%
Djokovic...
- 1st serve percentage (49/77) 64%
- 1st serve points won (32/49) 65%
- 2nd serve points won (12/28) 43%
- Ace 7
- Double Faults 2
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (25/77) 32%
Serve Pattern
Nadal served...
- to FH 35%
- to BH 64%
- to Body 2%
Djokovic served...
- to FH 33%
- to BH 56%
- to Body 11%
Return Stats
Nadal made...
- 50 (20 FH, 30 BH), including 1 runaround FH
- 18 Errors, comprising...
- 8 Unforced (5 FH, 3 BH)
- 10 Forced (3 FH, 7 BH)
- Return Rate (50/75) 67%
Djokovic made...
- 34 (12 FH, 22 BH), including 3 runaround FHs & 1 return-approach
- 1 Winner (1 FH)
- 17 Errors, comprising...
- 8 Unforced (3 FH, 5 BH)
- 9 Forced (4 FH, 5 BH)
- Return Rate (34/55) 62%
Break Points
Nadal 4/10 (6 games)
Djokovic 1/2 (1 game)
Winners (including returns, excluding aces)
Nadal 15 (8 FH, 2 BH, 2 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 1 BHV, 1 OH)
Djokovic 13 (5 FH, 4 BH, 2 FHV, 1 BHV, 1 OH)
Nadal's FHs - 2 dtl, 3 inside-out, 1 inside-in at net, 2 drop shots
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 longline pass at net
- 1 from a serve-volley point, a first volley BHV
- the FH1/2V was a non-net point (but played like a 'volley' half-volley not a groundstroke)
Djokovic's FHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl/inside-out, 2 inside-out (1 return), 1 inside-in
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 2 drop shots (1 at net)
- 1 from a serve-volley point, a second volley OH
Errors (excluding returns and serves)
Nadal 23
- 12 Unforced (7 FH, 5 BH)
- 11 Forced (7 FH, 3 BH, 1 FHV)... with 1 BH running-down-drop-shot at net
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 46.7
Djokovic 33
- 29 Unforced (16 FH, 11 BH, 2 BHV)
- 4 Forced (2 FH, 2 BH)
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 46.9
(Note 1: all half-volleys refer to such shots played at net. Half -volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke counts)
(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
Nadal was...
- 6/10 (60%) at net, including...
- 1/1 serve-volleying, a 1st serve
---
- 0/1 forced back
Djokovic was...
- 9/12 (75%) at net, including...
- 2/2 serve-volleying, both 1st serves
---
- 1/1 return-approaching
Match Report
Strange match, especially in hindsight. Novak Djokovic - the wolf, the dog-on-a-bone, the toughest of customers - seems to lose heart as his play gets sloppy, and quits. And the court is different from recent Wimbledon ones, with what-used-to-be normal, slippery, low bounce
Pretty good serve from Djokovic, a decent one from Nadal
Both players take returns early. Again, in hindsight, its odd to see Nadal do so. He’s virtually playing pick-up returns. Both struggle to deal with the skiddy bounce on the return and are rushed by pace too
Court action is baseline stuff. Solid and good to start. And Djoko getting sloppy after that and remaining so to the premature end
He’s mildly showing signs of favouring a leg around middle/late second set. And footwork gets more imprecise (its not a paradigm of surety before that either), a little lazy. It looks more like trying to show he’s struggling than anything so serious that one couldn’t help but reveal it (he’s never been one to go out of his way to hide physical issues)
His movements continue in that vein, and he’s still sloppy as Nadal races away to lead. 1-4 down in third set, talks to a trainer at change-over and calls it an afternoon
Following year, the recently crowned Australian Open champion Djoko would quit at Monte Carlo semis with a sore throat. He’d win Rome soon after
There doesn’t seem to be much wrong with Djokovic, if anything. Certainly, nothing warranting retiring from the match. When a player suddenly starts showing signs of having physical issues soon after starting to play sloppy, one wonders which came first - the supposed physical issues leading to sloppy play? Or the other way around? And when said physical issues don’t seem to be amputation cases, one can’t help but wonder how much of it is real and how much imaginary. He seems a lot healthier hear than he did even at the start of the 2023 Cincy final with Carlos Alcaraz, which he won in 3 long sets
All that aside, its shaping up to be a good match before Djoko gets sloppy. And Nadal with a fine 15 winners, 12 UEs showing, though Djoko playing poorly is bigger factor (he’s got 29 UEs) in match turning Nadal’s way for good
The court plays very differently from recent Wimbledons, and brings home how much courts have changed there over the years. Its doubtful Wimbledon champions for this period would be commenting adversely about hard court events being too fast the way recent champions have (justifiably - as in, they seem to be considerably quicker than Wimby, which isn’t saying much anymore). Balls skim through low, and knee height bounce is normal
Unreturned serves - Nadal 38%, Djoko 32%
Comparing to Wimby finals and 1 semi in the ongoing decade -
- ‘24 Alcaraz 28%, Djokovic 25%
- ‘23 Alcaraz 27%, Djokovic 23%
- ‘23 Djoko 29%, Sinner 24%
- ‘22 Djoko 35%, Kyrgios 42%
- ‘21 Djoko 30%, Berrettini 31%
The only match with higher rates is the ‘22 final, featuring Nick Kyrgios, a top-drawer server well beyond everyone else on show, and also a particularly early taking returner, prone to having low return rates
Djokovic himself has become a more accurate server recently than he was in ‘07, and Nadal’s serve is above average at best in this match. Berrettini and Sinner are significantly bigger servers (especially the former) than the serve showings off both players in this ‘07 match
Nadal’s 38% isn’t augmented by Djoko’s ‘injury’. Whatever trouble he’s having is barely perceptible in rallies, let alone on the return. Mentally not being all there probably has a hand in it. Suffice to say, his consistency on return is not good
Ace’d - Nadal 7, Djoko 4
Return FEs - Nadal 10, Djoko 9
Return UEs - both 8
Relatively high UEs on return for both players. 5/8 UE for both players are against first serves. Relatively tough for UEs, standard slightly wide or in swing zone first serves of decent pace. If not too easy, kinds of serves returner would be disappointed to miss
Trade off of good depth on returns by both players, Djoko more so. As stronger server, he’s returned worse to trail freebies by 6%
Nadal would go onto lose the final to Roger Federer for second year in a row. This was Djokovic’s first semi-final showing a the event. Nadal had recently won the French Open, beating Djokovic en route to the title. The two would go onto contest the 2011 final, with Djokovic winning
Nadal won 71 points, Djokovic 61
Serve Stats
Nadal...
- 1st serve percentage (32/55) 58%
- 1st serve points won (25/32) 78%
- 2nd serve points won (13/23) 57%
- Ace 4
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (21/55) 38%
Djokovic...
- 1st serve percentage (49/77) 64%
- 1st serve points won (32/49) 65%
- 2nd serve points won (12/28) 43%
- Ace 7
- Double Faults 2
- Unreturned Serve Percentage (25/77) 32%
Serve Pattern
Nadal served...
- to FH 35%
- to BH 64%
- to Body 2%
Djokovic served...
- to FH 33%
- to BH 56%
- to Body 11%
Return Stats
Nadal made...
- 50 (20 FH, 30 BH), including 1 runaround FH
- 18 Errors, comprising...
- 8 Unforced (5 FH, 3 BH)
- 10 Forced (3 FH, 7 BH)
- Return Rate (50/75) 67%
Djokovic made...
- 34 (12 FH, 22 BH), including 3 runaround FHs & 1 return-approach
- 1 Winner (1 FH)
- 17 Errors, comprising...
- 8 Unforced (3 FH, 5 BH)
- 9 Forced (4 FH, 5 BH)
- Return Rate (34/55) 62%
Break Points
Nadal 4/10 (6 games)
Djokovic 1/2 (1 game)
Winners (including returns, excluding aces)
Nadal 15 (8 FH, 2 BH, 2 FHV, 1 FH1/2V, 1 BHV, 1 OH)
Djokovic 13 (5 FH, 4 BH, 2 FHV, 1 BHV, 1 OH)
Nadal's FHs - 2 dtl, 3 inside-out, 1 inside-in at net, 2 drop shots
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 longline pass at net
- 1 from a serve-volley point, a first volley BHV
- the FH1/2V was a non-net point (but played like a 'volley' half-volley not a groundstroke)
Djokovic's FHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl/inside-out, 2 inside-out (1 return), 1 inside-in
- BHs - 1 cc, 1 dtl, 2 drop shots (1 at net)
- 1 from a serve-volley point, a second volley OH
Errors (excluding returns and serves)
Nadal 23
- 12 Unforced (7 FH, 5 BH)
- 11 Forced (7 FH, 3 BH, 1 FHV)... with 1 BH running-down-drop-shot at net
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 46.7
Djokovic 33
- 29 Unforced (16 FH, 11 BH, 2 BHV)
- 4 Forced (2 FH, 2 BH)
Unforced Error Forcefulness Index 46.9
(Note 1: all half-volleys refer to such shots played at net. Half -volleys played from other parts of the court are included within relevant groundstroke counts)
(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
Nadal was...
- 6/10 (60%) at net, including...
- 1/1 serve-volleying, a 1st serve
---
- 0/1 forced back
Djokovic was...
- 9/12 (75%) at net, including...
- 2/2 serve-volleying, both 1st serves
---
- 1/1 return-approaching
Match Report
Strange match, especially in hindsight. Novak Djokovic - the wolf, the dog-on-a-bone, the toughest of customers - seems to lose heart as his play gets sloppy, and quits. And the court is different from recent Wimbledon ones, with what-used-to-be normal, slippery, low bounce
Pretty good serve from Djokovic, a decent one from Nadal
Both players take returns early. Again, in hindsight, its odd to see Nadal do so. He’s virtually playing pick-up returns. Both struggle to deal with the skiddy bounce on the return and are rushed by pace too
Court action is baseline stuff. Solid and good to start. And Djoko getting sloppy after that and remaining so to the premature end
He’s mildly showing signs of favouring a leg around middle/late second set. And footwork gets more imprecise (its not a paradigm of surety before that either), a little lazy. It looks more like trying to show he’s struggling than anything so serious that one couldn’t help but reveal it (he’s never been one to go out of his way to hide physical issues)
His movements continue in that vein, and he’s still sloppy as Nadal races away to lead. 1-4 down in third set, talks to a trainer at change-over and calls it an afternoon
Following year, the recently crowned Australian Open champion Djoko would quit at Monte Carlo semis with a sore throat. He’d win Rome soon after
There doesn’t seem to be much wrong with Djokovic, if anything. Certainly, nothing warranting retiring from the match. When a player suddenly starts showing signs of having physical issues soon after starting to play sloppy, one wonders which came first - the supposed physical issues leading to sloppy play? Or the other way around? And when said physical issues don’t seem to be amputation cases, one can’t help but wonder how much of it is real and how much imaginary. He seems a lot healthier hear than he did even at the start of the 2023 Cincy final with Carlos Alcaraz, which he won in 3 long sets
All that aside, its shaping up to be a good match before Djoko gets sloppy. And Nadal with a fine 15 winners, 12 UEs showing, though Djoko playing poorly is bigger factor (he’s got 29 UEs) in match turning Nadal’s way for good
The court plays very differently from recent Wimbledons, and brings home how much courts have changed there over the years. Its doubtful Wimbledon champions for this period would be commenting adversely about hard court events being too fast the way recent champions have (justifiably - as in, they seem to be considerably quicker than Wimby, which isn’t saying much anymore). Balls skim through low, and knee height bounce is normal
Unreturned serves - Nadal 38%, Djoko 32%
Comparing to Wimby finals and 1 semi in the ongoing decade -
- ‘24 Alcaraz 28%, Djokovic 25%
- ‘23 Alcaraz 27%, Djokovic 23%
- ‘23 Djoko 29%, Sinner 24%
- ‘22 Djoko 35%, Kyrgios 42%
- ‘21 Djoko 30%, Berrettini 31%
The only match with higher rates is the ‘22 final, featuring Nick Kyrgios, a top-drawer server well beyond everyone else on show, and also a particularly early taking returner, prone to having low return rates
Djokovic himself has become a more accurate server recently than he was in ‘07, and Nadal’s serve is above average at best in this match. Berrettini and Sinner are significantly bigger servers (especially the former) than the serve showings off both players in this ‘07 match
Nadal’s 38% isn’t augmented by Djoko’s ‘injury’. Whatever trouble he’s having is barely perceptible in rallies, let alone on the return. Mentally not being all there probably has a hand in it. Suffice to say, his consistency on return is not good
Ace’d - Nadal 7, Djoko 4
Return FEs - Nadal 10, Djoko 9
Return UEs - both 8
Relatively high UEs on return for both players. 5/8 UE for both players are against first serves. Relatively tough for UEs, standard slightly wide or in swing zone first serves of decent pace. If not too easy, kinds of serves returner would be disappointed to miss
Trade off of good depth on returns by both players, Djoko more so. As stronger server, he’s returned worse to trail freebies by 6%