No one takes Nadal's place as my main rival ever, doesn't matter what Alcaraz does
- Thread starter Hitman
- Start date
Hitman
Bionic Poster
Some Djokovic fans, yes. But some Federer fans get upset also and bring age into it, some Nadal fans get upset also and bring injuries into it. Why are you making it out like only those that support Djokovic like to take the shine off wins over their favorite?
_phantom
Hall of Fame
Fedal had 9 slam finals, all except one came in a period of 5 years.
Fedovic had 5 slam finals spreading over 11 years I think.
It is not difficult to guess which rivalry got the most attention.
RelentlessAttack
Hall of Fame
Basically this is what Djokovic is saying to Nadal...
The stone being the McDonald's of this world.
Epic scene. Love it
StrongRule
Talk Tennis Guru
This comes from all fanbases, and sometimes the excuses are indeed valid. I wouldn't bring this up if Djokovic fans (and yes, THAT is done 99% of the time only by Djokovic fans) weren't trying to hype every win over an our of form opponent, no matter what. The purpose of this thread is basically to say that you don't care how terrible Nadal has been recently, Djokovic beating him 6-0 6-0 6-1 will still be epic.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
Djokovic and Nadal played 9 also and played 7 in a 4 year period.
They also played a whopping 11 Slam SFs. That's probably an Open Era record.
Yea we already know which one got the most attention.
Hitman
Bionic Poster
Hitman
Bionic Poster
Hitman
Bionic Poster
The purpose of this thread is to basically never underestimate a champion like Nadal, that even now, Djokovic still sees him as his main rival, no matter what anyone else does.
_phantom
Hall of Fame
For casual fans and general public, semis don't cut as much as finals.
Djokodal got enough attention anyway but it came later.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
Finals are the bigger matches but Federer and Djokovic played less finals mainly because of the draws.
Born_to_slice
Legend
Yeah, true goats forgot how to play tennis as soon as Novak started owning them.
But, but...#perpetual
Hitman
Bionic Poster
Djokovic has played Federer SIX times at USO, and some of those matches are historic
Djokovic has played Nadal THREE times at USO, all final
Federer and Nadal have played each other ZERO times at USO, yet they are the main rivals for each other.
_phantom
Hall of Fame
For Djokovic and Federer the answer simply is Nadal.
Nadal has the luxury to tease from time to time.
jl809
Hall of Fame
Fedovic had the most interesting rivalry of the Big 3 across all surfaces and yet have minimal respect or liking for each other so just **** all over it lol
I agree with OP but hope Alcaraz has a good rivalry with Djokovic before Djokovic retires. Djoker’s game is still there so it will be a classic if so
I agree with OP but hope Alcaraz has a good rivalry with Djokovic before Djokovic retires. Djoker’s game is still there so it will be a classic if so
D
Deleted member 779124
Guest
Federer-Nadal and Nadal-Djokovic hit slightly better highs IMHO but couldn't keep it up as close and competitive for as long as Fedovic.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
Yea and all those matches with Federer and Djokovic at the USO were at least in the SF. 2 finals and 4 SFs.
Yea the lack of USO matches sticks out also.
Poisoned Slice
Bionic Poster
Fascinating.
junior74
Talk Tennis Guru
Ombeleebel.
GabeT
G.O.A.T.
No, not at all all. Novak is at least as big a rival for Fed as Nadal is (or in both cases, was). If not bigger. Novak beat Fed more times at the slams than Nadal did (11 vs 10) and stopped him A LOT more times at Fed’s favorite slam surfaces (10 vs 4). Novak is also the only player to ever have beaten Fed at all four slams and Fed the only player to have beaten Novak at all 4 slams. Fedalovic played against each other 50 times, 10 more times than Fedal played each other. Only Nadalovic played more matches
Phoenix*
Professional
2-0 in their prime.
_phantom
Hall of Fame
Not so long ago, Federer himself said that he played Djokovic mostly in semis. I don't think his views changed much from that after the last couple of meetings as a grandpa.
GabeT
G.O.A.T.
grandpa Fed easily beat Nadal at W19 but it was Novak that stopped Fed from what would have been one of his most historic achievements
Sampras-Bruguera 1993
Legend
Djoker is retiring in a few years so I don’t think there is much left for definition of “rivalries” when all these kids are 15 years younger LOL. He’s almost old enough to be their dad
Rivalries are between contemporaries. Not between you and your grandchildren
Rivalries are between contemporaries. Not between you and your grandchildren
_phantom
Hall of Fame
Are you demanding that Federer mentions Djokovic as his biggest rival?
Otherwise he is lying?
Didn't Nadal stop him from the possibility of a few CYGS and 6th straight Wim titles in his peak? Beating 2 rivals to win his last slam at that age would have been special, but it's special because what had happened before.
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GabeT
G.O.A.T.
Lol
joekapa
Legend
He doesn't have to mention anything. The numbers tell a different story to the narrative.
CoolCoolCool
Hall of Fame
BeatlesFan
Bionic Poster
Then I guess Nadal isn't a true tennis fan since he said last summer, "in a personal way, of course my personal relationship with Roger have been always great, and he's probably my greatest rival."
https://tennisbuzz.net/roger-federer-is-my-greatest-rival-and-i-am-missing-him-admits-rafael-nadal
joekapa
Legend
Because he essentially dominated Federer, and thought that he would dominate the field..........
But as Uncle Tomi said to him, when he saw a young Djokovic practicing, ......... "I think we have a problem".
DSH
Talk Tennis Guru
In tennis there is a surface called clay and where one of the four Grand Slam events is played.The "rivalry"
Roland Garros is its name.
The Guru
Legend
Don't think there will ever be another year like 2012. Big 4 pushed eachother to ridiculous heights.
NoleFam
Bionic Poster
Yea I agree. At least not for a very long time.
Do you think Rafa really thinks that? I'm pretty sure Rafa would rather lose to his friend Fred than his foe DjoAnd yet, Djokovic will still never be viewed as Nadal's main rival LOL
Imagine being both Federer AND Djokovic's main rival!?
#JustRafaThings
DSH
Talk Tennis Guru
Is only Wimbledon worth it?
So, tennis must be reduced to those two weeks to define the Messiah.
The_Order
G.O.A.T.
No, you don't. Instead you try to take away all his credibility...
Mustard
Bionic Poster
Djokovic has been saying for over a decade that Nadal is his biggest rival. He could see that Nadal was the biggest obstacle to his "destiny" ambitions, and might still thwart him yet. I'm sure they'll all get on when their careers are over and they've had a bit of time off. But while they are playing, they are soldiers on rival sides.
The_Order
G.O.A.T.
Yeah I'm sure Nadal's shaking with fear everyday...
Mustard
Bionic Poster
Some people just don't get Nadal's mentality. He is just thinking about the next medical visit and the next practice session for now, and then the next tournament when he's ready. The French Open is 3 months away.
joekapa
Legend
Didn't say he is shaking with fear. But there is no doubt he is thinking about it. Remember when he said "I will die for it", a few months back ?
At RG, he will not dare to duck. Or will he ?
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joekapa
Legend
"I will die for it".
Remember that from a few months back ? You bet your bottom dollar he is thinking about it. He knows he has a day of reckoning ahead of him.
BorgTheGOAT
Legend
Starting with Djokovic’s peak and excluding Rafa’s best surface, can it get more cherry-picked? What about their H2H pre-2011 on clay and grass only?The "rivalry"
BorgTheGOAT
Legend
Actually out of all three I liked the Fedovic rivalry most, even though it gets the least recognition. First of all it was great that there was some animosity between them other than with Djokodal or especially Fedal where you had the impression, they loved each other and were even happy sometimes for the other one to win.
Then I think their rivalry was also the most unpredictable as they have the same surfaces as their best ones. Both of them are really good on grass, HC and indoors and way weaker on clay, which means that both can beat the other one on each surface and prime vs prime it is basically close to 50/50 everywhere. With Djokodal it became a foregone conclusion at some point, that Novak wins every HC match while Nadal wins most of the clay matches, with only grass providing maybe some unpredictability.
Gary Duane
G.O.A.T.
I think it is fair to bring in age in an intelligent way. For instance, looking back in time I don't think it was reasonable or expected for Djokovic to beat Federer most of the time before 2011. Statistics make it very clear that Djokovic was a different player from 2011 and forward. Statistics also make it clear that even in 2007 Federer was beginning to fade a bit, and that has nothing to do with his rivals. I personally believe that his level from 2004 to 2006 was unsustainable with the racket he was using, which was technically already outmoded. I think it is logical, rather, to think about how Sampras continued to win right up to the end even with old technology. Federer did the same thing. By 2007 the reflexes of a very young man were waning, and he needed the support of more modern technology. That support did not come until much later when he was very obviously no longer the same physical specimen that he was up to 2006.
The fact that Federer as a much older player sometimes came so close to equaling Djokovic with that six year disadvantage is overlooked and badly analyzed. Equally badly analyzed is how well Djokovic already paired against Federer before 2011 when he was far from his peak.
Basically these two players peaked at different times and never really played against each other when they were both at their respective zeniths.
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Phoenix*
Professional
Not prime & not the main surface. Clay is 8-11, nothing to brag about for Nadal.
BorgTheGOAT
Legend
15/16 is also not prime for Nadal so you can reduce your H2H stats by seven Djokovic wins. Novak in 2007/08 was way better than Rafa in 15/16 so what you are arguing is a moot point. As for 8-11 on clay: I was asking their H2H on grass and clay prior to 2011. Let me help you here, it is 11-0 in favour of Nadal, see how easy it is when you cherry pick.
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