Novak Djokovic backed his arch-rival Rafael Nadal and supported his cause for the abysmal performances in 2015. He had kind words for his long-time rival and said that a comeback was inevitable.
The year was 2015 and Rafael Nadal was going through a performance slump. The Spaniard was struggling to find consistent success and had some lingering mental and physical issues to tackle.
The Spaniard was dealing with back pain that had consistently bothered him throughout the season. But, the greatest player on clay surfaces was playing through it. In the quarter-finals of the 2015 Roland Garros, Nadal faced a familiar foe in Novak Djokovic who was also the number one player at that time.
Even though the match was expected to go in Novak’s favor, nothing was certain. Nadal was known for his caliber in clay surfaces. But, no fairytales or prior records could save his cause as he lost to the Serbian 7-5, 6-3, 6-1, ending the match in straight sets.
It was a disappointing loss for Nadal. An already bad start to the season had just taken an even worse turn. But, all hopes weren’t lost and his rivals and supporters, in symphony, praised the Spaniard for showing courage on the court.
After the match, Novak openly backed his rival and said that these are ‘humanly’ dips that everyone faces at some point in their careers. He said that if anyone needed reminding of his prowess, they could just look back at his career stats.
“Well, I think that’s something that we are going to see. I mean, how he’s going to reflect on what has happened this year on the clay courts, which was below his standard and something that is expected from him considering all the results he had in the last ten years,” said Novak.
“But in the end of the day, he’s human, as well, and it’s normal to have some seasons like that. I understand that people are questioning now his game and, you know, where he’s going to be. But if you need a reminder of who he is, you just look at his career stats and Grand Slams that he won.”
One of the two #RolandGarros losses for Rafael Nadal happened on his birthday, on June 3, 2015, when he lost 75 63 61 to Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals on his 29th birthday. It ended Nadal's 39-match Roland Garros win streak and was his second loss in 72 French Open matches. pic.twitter.com/geg0wBM8ay
— Randy Walker (@TennisPublisher) June 3, 2018
Novak further added that age was not a root cause for the Spaniard’s performances.
“I think that says enough about his quality as a player and as a champion. He’s somebody that understands what he needs to do when he’s feeling down to come back and fight to be the best,”
“That’s what he has done after nine months of absence from the tour, and he came back, had one of the best years of his life in 2013, if I’m not wrong. So I don’t think that this is a big deal still. I think he is 29 and still has years in front of him, and I’m sure he’s going to bounce back and play very strong.”
“Novak was just better than me,” Rafael Nadal admits his defeat to a better-prepared Novak Djokovic
After his loss at the French Open quarter-finals at the hands of Novak Djokovic, the Spaniard said that the better player won on the day.
Addressing his fitness issues that could have been a reason for his defeat, Nadal said that there were no excuses for his defeat. He said that even though he played two average sets, he wasn’t happy with his performance in the third one which eventually lost him the match.
“I was doubtful about myself the 11 years that I have been playing here, I won nine and I lost twice. Those are good in life.”
“Some days the things are better, some days the things are worse. When you play against an opponent that is winning almost every match like Novak and you are not playing enough consistent during the whole match, then it is an option that this thing can happen.”
