The final two contenders for this year’s
French Open title have been revealed.
World number 1 Novak Djokovic will take on world number 2 and King of
clay Rafael Nadal.
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Despite the outcome history will be made
with this Roland Garros title: Nadal seeks his 7th French Open title to surpass
current record holder Bjorn Borg in terms of titles won at RG while the Serb is
aiming to become the first player since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all 4 grand
slam titles at the same time- a feat not even rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger
Federer could accomplish.
In terms of match wins against the Serb,
the Spaniard leads 18-14 however surely regardless of any statistic Nadal will
walk on Court Philippe Chatrier as the firm favourite after his successful clay
court season with wins in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Rome on the way to Roland
Garros. Nadal has looked faultless
throughout the tournament, brushing aside each of his opponents in straight
sets and, even more remarkably, only losing his serve once in the entire
tournament. Even in the semi-finals
Nadal was able to brush fellow compatriot and respected clay court player David
Ferrer aside with a surprisingly easy score line.
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In contrast however, the world number 1
hasn't had the easiest journey to the final, having been pushed to the limits
by Italian Andreas Seppi, and having been match point down 4 times in his epic
5 set battle against Frenchman Jo-Wilfred Tsonga. His semi-final match against Federer has surprisingly
been his easiest match in the second week of the tournament, easing past the
former world number one in straight sets, despite having to salvage breaks of
his serve in both the first and second sets.
Nadal has already defeated the world
number 1 twice on clay this season to reiterate his dominance on the
surface. However, no one should brush
aside any hope Novak Djokovic has of winning on Sunday as we are all far too
aware of how brilliant Djokovic can be.
Last year Djokovic proved he had the ability and stamina to beat the
King of clay. In addition to this, the
match record between the two in grand slam finals stands heavily in the Serb’s
favour, which will surely give Djokovic and spectators alike, some confidence
walking into the match.
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Unlike Nadal, Djokovic is very inexperienced
in French Open finals and so it is absolutely vital that the world number one begins
the match strongly and very aggressive against the defending champion. If Novak is to stand a chance of taking the
title from Nadal he must also ensure that he attacks every one of Nadal’s serves-
both first and second. If he can get a
strong start at the beginning of each point on the Spaniard’s serve and play
aggressive in these points he will put the pressure on Nadal- something all his
other opponents have failed to do. On
top of this, Novak has to make sure his first serve percentage stays high, as
well as varying up his game to keep Nadal guessing. It is imperative that Djokovic can dominate
play as much as possible, and keep the points short and sweet: Nadal will have
the edge the longer the points last. The
sooner he plants that seed of doubt in the Spaniards mind, the more chance he
has of winning the title.
In terms of what can Nadal do… well, is
there anything else he needs to do to grab himself his 7th Roland
Garros title? Just keep the Serb
running. If Nadal is dominating the
points and having Djokovic constantly running around the court then it will
almost certainly guarantee him the match as the world number one is surely
tired after two 5 set matches this week- yes he’s had time to recover but he
still showed signs of defeat and tiredness against Roger Federer in the semi-finals,
something he must not do on Sunday if he relishes any chance of obtaining his
first French Open title.
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The world number 1 ranking is not at risk
in this match, which will keep Djokovic that it calmer, however this win is
vital for Nadal if he really wants to surpass Novak and regain the number 1
ranking in the near future.
My verdict? Despite it paining me to go
against Djokovic, I can’t see the Serb beating the King of clay, UNLESS the
match was to go the distance and it was all down to the 5th and
final set. If this turns out to be the
case, it is the only time I’d favour the world number one over Rafael
Nadal. Nadal will really be feeling the
pressure at that point, in comparison to Novak who will have gained all the
confidence he needs to push that little bit further to win the Championships.
We know the Spaniard can do it and
probably will do it, but I most certainly would never brush aside Novak
Djokovic. After two disappointing
semi-finals, surely this match will be one epic battle… but who will come out
on top?
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