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This Would Be The Icing On Djokovic's Roland Garros Cake…

  • Posted: Oct 10, 2020

Novak Djokovic had a close call on Friday evening against Stefanos Tsitsipas, needing five sets to reach his fifth Roland Garros final. Now the Serbian is on the verge of history, three sets from becoming the first player in the Open Era to complete two Career Grand Slams. A triumph against Rafael Nadal in Sunday’s championship match would also give the Serbian his 18th major trophy.

“That would be [the] icing on the cake,” Djokovic said. “I hopefully will be able to play my best tennis, because that’s what’s going to be needed in order to have a shot at the trophy. But look, I am in position to be close to the trophy. I’m in the last match of the tournament, playing against the biggest rival, the biggest obstacle and challenge that you can have. This is what it comes down to. I’ve been there. I’ve done it. I understand what needs to be done and how I need to prepare myself. I’m looking forward to it.”

Djokovic understands defeating the 12-time champion will be the ultimate challenge. He will play Nadal for the 56th time in their record ATP Head2Head rivalry. They have split eight previous Grand Slam finals.

“He’s definitely my greatest rival,” Nadal said. “Playing him in so many great matches, of course the past will have some effect in terms of respect towards each other, [the] motivation to get out on the court and play your best, knowing that we both have to be at our best in order to win against each other.”

For the first two sets against Tsitsipas, Djokovic was at his exceptional best. But as the Greek raised his level, Djokovic was unable to close the match. Sometimes when the World No. 1 is put into difficulty, he’ll vocally pump himself up to try to kick into another gear. He did so in the quarter-finals against Pablo Carreno Busta. But against the Greek, Djokovic didn’t do so as visibly.

“I was definitely not pleased with the way I played the finishing stages of the third and fourth sets, but I was very pleased with the way I kept my composure mentally throughout the entire match,” Djokovic said. “I did feel that even though I lost the third and fourth, I still felt like I was the better player on the court. I had more control. I just felt comfortable playing.”

Djokovic was highly complimentary of Tsitsipas, who had never previously advanced past the fourth round on the Parisian terre battue.

“Credit to him for fighting back. He just played terrific tennis, especially in the fourth set when he was facing break points. I had many opportunities to break his serve in the fourth and finish the match earlier. He’s a fighter. He’s one of the best players in the world. Deservedly so,” Djokovic said.

“Obviously he was also fighting for his first Grand Slam final. Of course, there was a lot at stake for him. He was motivated to try to turn the match around, which he did very well. But in the end I think he ran out of gas. That’s when I stepped it up, used my opportunities when they were presented in the fifth, and closed out the match in a great fashion.”

Djokovic’s Titles By Grand Slam

 Australian Open  8
 Roland Garros  1
 Wimbledon  5
 US Open  3

Some might wonder if not closing out the Greek in straight sets will have an impact on Sunday’s final. Nadal defeated Diego Schwartzman in straight sets. But Djokovic only spent 45 more minutes on court on Friday than the Spaniard.

“I’m not feeling exhausted physically so much after tonight’s match, obviously almost four hours. It was a great battle,” Djokovic said. “But I feel fine. I think a day-and-a-half will be plenty of time for me to recover. I’m really looking forward to a great battle with Rafa.”

This tournament holds special meaning for the Serbian. The Coupe des Mousquetaires was his white whale until 2016, when he finally completed his Career Grand Slam in Paris. Now, Djokovic can achieve the feat again.

“Every French Open final that I played was the match of my life before I actually won it,” Djokovic said. “It does have a certain significance and difference when I play a French Open final [compared] to any other Slam final. This is the one that I’ve won the least, so of course I am extremely motivated to try to get my hands on another trophy.”

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Updates: Tsitsipas Forces Djokovic To Fourth Set

  • Posted: Oct 09, 2020

After failing to convert a match point, Novak Djokovic has been taken to a fourth set by Stefanos Tsitsipas in their Roland Garros semi-final. The Serbian leads Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-2, 5-7 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

The World No. 1 appeared to be closing in on victory after breaking serve for a 5-4 lead in the third set with impressive use of the drop shot, but Tsitsipas increased his aggression to win three straight games and the third set.

Djokovic is attempting to reach his fifth Roland Garros final in his 10th semi-final at the event (4-5). The 33-year-old is chasing his second Roland Garros trophy as he attempts to become the first man in the Open Era — and only the third man in history — to win all four Grand Slam titles on multiple occasions.

Tsitsipas is attempting to recover from two sets down for only the second time in his career. The World No. 6 claimed his first comeback from that position in the first round against Jaume Munar. The reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion is also bidding to become the youngest Grand Slam finalist since Juan Martin del Potro’s title run at the 2009 US Open.

Rafael Nadal is waiting for the winner of this match in Sunday’s final. The 12-time champion claimed a 6-3, 6-3, 7-6(0) victory against Diego Schwartzman to improve to 13-0 in Roland Garros semi-finals.

Despite not facing a break point in the opening two service games of any of his previous five matches at this event, Djokovic was forced to save four to hold serve in the opening game of the match. Surviving that challenge appeared to work in his favour, as he ripped a crosscourt forehand winner in the following game to establish a 2-0 lead.

Serving at 4-2, Djokovic showed great movement and balance to save break point at the net after a 23-shot rally. The 81-time tour-level titlist once again fired a crosscourt forehand winner to close that game.

After taking the first set, Djokovic chased down balls from behind the baseline to keep rallies alive and frustrate his opponent. Tsitsipas led 40/0 in service games at 2-2 and 2-4, but was broken on both occasions as Djokovic forced the Greek to play one extra shot. After extracting crucial errors, Djokovic achieved near perfection on serve at 5-2. The top seed served out the set with three aces and one unreturned serve.

In a third set with few break opportunities, Djokovic made the first move at 4-4. The 17-time Grand Slam champion used the drop shot to mix up play — as he has throughout the European clay swing — and outmanoeuvre his opponent. With Djokovic serving for the match, Tsitsipas closed the net well and played with power from the baseline to save match point and reach 5-5. After holding serve to 30, Tsitsipas continued to take his game to Djokovic and fired a forehand up the line to force the match to a fourth set.

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Updates: Nadal One Set From 13th Roland Garros Final

  • Posted: Oct 09, 2020

Rafael Nadal is one set away from reaching his 13th Roland Garros final. The Spaniard leads Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 6-3 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Attempting to gain revenge for his quarter-final loss to the Argentine at last month’s Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome, Nadal has landed 24 winners and won 13 of 15 net points to move one set from his 99th victory in 101 matches at Stade Roland Garros.

The five-time year-end No. 1 is attempting to extend his unbeaten run in Roland Garros semi-finals to 13-0. Across his previous 12 encounters at this stage in Paris, Nadal has won 36 of the 39 sets he has contested.

Competing in a Grand Slam semi-final for the first time, Schwartzman is attempting to recover from two sets down for only the second time in his career. The 28-year-old is bidding to become only the seventh Argentinian man to reach a Grand Slam final.

The winner of Nadal and Schwartzman’s contest will face Novak Djokovic or Stefanos Tsitsipas for the trophy on Sunday. Djokovic enters the second semi-final with a 3-2 ATP Head2Head record against Tsitsipas.

The opening game of the match provided an early indicator to the battle ahead, with both men duelling from the baseline for 14 minutes as Nadal attempted to hold serve. The Spaniard was forced to save two break points, before ripping a crosscourt backhand winner to get on the scoreboard. Three consecutive breaks followed, as Nadal established a 3-1 lead by using his forehand down the line and moving to the net to finish points. The 12-time champion faced regular pressure on serve, but closed the set after 64 minutes when Schwartzman fired a backhand into the net.

Nadal extended his advantage early in the second set, driving his groundstrokes into Schwartzman’s forehand corner to earn break point. The 59-time clay titlist broke through when Schwartzman mis-timed an attempted backhand up the line. Nadal also began to find rhythm on his serve, improving his first-serve points won from 63 per cent in the opening set to 81 per cent. Nadal clinched a two-set advantage by breaking serve for the fourth time. The Manacor native drove a forehand up the line on set point, which Schwartzman failed to control on his forehand.

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