Schwartzman and Tsitsipas both missed break points in the first game and were immediately broken to set the tone in the first set. Nadal was cruising at 4-2, 30-0 in the third yet suffered a blip to give Schwartzman hope. I gave my best, I really did. The world No. That's why this is a special sport. But I managed to come back and played really well but it wasn't good enough.". It was to be the last passage of play that could vaguely be described as conventional. 2 The ATP numbers between brackets = non-countable tournaments. His opponent was Juan Martín del Potro who had previously beaten world No. Djokovic then followed as the afternoon gave way to evening and downed Tsitsipas 6-3 6-2 5-7 4-6 6-1 in the second semifinal to earn his spot in a fifth clay court grand slam final. "It was difficult to close the match in a fighting way, in a fighting spirit.". In the second round he faced Ryan Harrison and managed to beat him in straight sets. Nerves flooded Djokovic's shots, the error count mounted and he pushed a forehand long, ceding first blood to the Spaniard. The answer turned out to be an emphatic no. As a result, Nadal failed to serve out the match and faltered in the subsequent tiebreak. I need to make another one. Schwartzman got back on serve temporarily but was broken straight away for 1-3 and lost the first in an extended 64 minutes. He also scored a victory in doubles with Marc Lopez. In the semifinals Nadal faced long time rival Roger Federer, and recorded his first indoor win against the Swiss at the ATP World Tour Finals in straight sets. This granted him 3.6 million US dollars in prize money, the most money earned by a tennis player at a single tournament. Djokovic celebrates his five-set victory over Tsitsipas. He became the 3rd player after Patrick Rafter and Andy Roddick to win the Summer Slam (Won Canada, Cincinnati, and the US Open in the same year). The trainer rubbed Tsitsipas' leg as the match stretched on and despite winning the fourth, Tsitsipas wilted physically in the fifth. To his astonishment it cost him the point. It was three-all after half an hour, 20 points each, every exchange rammed with anxiety, a pair of accountants working out the best return for their investment. Nadal was drawn to face Leonardo Mayer next, but Mayer withdrew from the tournament due to an injury. Ferrer, who ground down Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in three sets in the second semi-final on Friday and is yet to drop a set at these championships, has beaten Nadal only four times in 23 encounters and never on clay in six attempts. At the French Open, he defeated Djokovic in an epic semifinal that went to 9–7 in the fifth set, before defeating David Ferrer to win his 8th Roland Garros crown. [7][8] He had a noteworthy comeback in the quarter-finals against Fabio Fognini, where he fought back from a set and break down to secure the victory. [15] Nadal was defeated in straight sets. Nadal-Djokovic was drama. When they got to a fifth set both slowed their serve in a tricky crosswind, anxiety again invading their tennis. It wasn't, though, for Nadal and Djokovic. For me, it's another year.I wasn't expecting an easy match. These victories gave him a 75–7 (91.46%) record in singles, and 6–1 (85.71%) record in doubles in 2013. His chances of becoming only the third man to beat Nadal at Roland Garros in the last 15 years plummeted. Fri 7 Jun 2013 16.01 EDT Had Nadal held leading 3-2 in the second, Djokovic was staring at a mountainous deficit against the greatest clay-court player of them all in the final of a tournament he had already won seven times. The 12-time tournament champion had to save three break points at 5-5 -- all with winners -- and stormed to the tiebreak, raising his arms in celebration when Schwartzman netted a backhand. The match was reminiscent of their 2012 encounter at the Australian Open final. Nadal skipped Miami, and finished Runner up to Novak Djokovic at Monte-Carlo. Further, Nadal studied their Rome match and spent time working on his clay court game in general. Schwartzman leaves the court after his defeat by Nadal. Nadal cashed in after 51 minutes and looked good for a win in under five sets. Nadal, who had his own dips, was iron-willed now – and relieved to see Djokovic leave one passing shot and over-hit two forehands as he wrapped it up 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7, 9-7. All rights reserved. He finally broke through at 4-5 in the third after Djokovic tried a big backhand down the line and sent it wide on his first match point. Many people speculated that this was the end of the year for Nadal, who was limping and visibly uncomfortable in his match. (CNN)The stakes couldn't be much higher when Rafael Nadal meets Novak Djokovic in Sunday's French Open men's final. Nadal defeated del Potro in three sets, winning his record-breaking twenty-second ATP Masters 1000 event and his third Indian Wells title. He followed that with victories at Barcelona, Madrid, and then Rome. He lost in the final, but rebounded with victories at São Paulo and Acapulco. "Without playing my best tennis, situation is very difficult," Nadal told reporters. Nadal started by beating Diego Schwartzman 6-3 6-3 7-6 (0) to reach a staggering 13th French Open final. Following 222 days injured, Nadal returned on the tennis court on February 5 at the Chile Open. Schwartzman inflicted a rare clay defeat on his pal last month at the Italian Open -- Nadal's lone buildup tournament in this reshuffled tennis season due to the coronavirus pandemic -- but his older rival once again proved that the best-of-five set format is a different beast. He was then stunned by Steve Darcis in the first round of Wimbledon, in what would be his only defeat prior to the semifinals all season. Rattled, the world No. In the final, Nadal yet again faced Djokovic. At Monte-Carlo Nadal reached his ninth straight final but lost in two sets to Djokovic. Serving to stay in the match at 6-7, Djokovic asked the umpire if the ends could be watered as he was struggling with his footing – and was denied. Only 1,000 fans are allowed at the French Open but a small pocket were Tsitsipas supporters who made themselves heard. Thus Rafael Nadal won his second US Open Championship, and his 13th Major overall, putting him third on the all-time list behind Federer (17) and Sampras (14). That's why he's a champion. Three break points for Nadal shifted the mood. He played both single and double-events and reached the final in both tournaments. The stakes couldn't be much higher when Rafael Nadal meets Novak Djokovic in Sunday's French Open men's final. "It's the biggest challenge maybe you can have in our sport on all surfaces, to play Nadal here at Roland Garros.". It is a near certainty, however, that his match against his Spanish compatriot David Ferrer on Sunday will not reach the same pitch of intensity. Updated 2307 GMT (0707 HKT) October 9, 2020. 1 Ranking in the process. Nadal was able to overcome Federer in two sets. Following 222 days injured, Nadal returned on the tennis court on February 5 at the Chile Open.