Popularly known as the ‘Big Three’ the trio of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer have dominated the tennis court in the 21st century. Rafael Nadal shared his experience of playing against the two in his new book titled ‘Rafa: My Story’.
The rivalry between these three players is the most discussed rivalry in the history of tennis. Rafael Nadal has played against Roger Federer a total of 40 times and leads the record 24-16 and has played against Novak Djokovic 59 times, which is more than any other head-to-head record and Djokovic leads the tie 30-29.
Roger Federer retired from tennis at the 2022 Laver Cup but Nadal and Djokovic are still active players. Nadal has been out of tennis for a long time since his second-round exit from the 2023 Australian Open.
Talking about their rivalries, Nadal explained in his book how he planned to win battles against the two. He mentioned that with Federer, patience is crucial. Federer’s style is a perfect blend of grace and power and being patient can force him to make mistakes over time.
He acknowledged Djokovic and mentioned how difficult is to play against him. He admits that there is no clear tactical plan and one has to be at his best and never give an upper hand to Djokovic throughout the match.
In his book, Rafa Nadal explains the difference between beating Roger Federer and beating Novak Djokovic.
— Swish 🍒 (@Zwxsh) November 28, 2023
His basic strategy to beat Federer – patience.
However, he says that "there is no clear tactical plan" to beat Djokovic and that he can be "unstoppable". pic.twitter.com/KgHmFF3tor
‘I did not imagine him winning 3 Grand Slams’- Rafael Nadal on Novak Djokovic’s form
Novak Djokovic couldn’t have asked for a better ending to the 2023 season winning three Grand Slams, two Masters tournaments, the Nitto ATP Finals, and the year-end No.1 Title.
36-year-old Djokovic started with the Australian Open and later won the French Open and the US Open. He also reached the final of the Wimbledon Open but lost to Carlos Alcaraz.
In a recent interview with Agencia EFE, Rafael Nadal was all praise for his Serbian rival. He said that Djokovic achieved something historic and there was nothing to do but congratulate him.
“In the end, we all know that Djokovic is what he is and that he has achieved something historic, something that has never been achieved before and we can only congratulate him.”
– Rafael Nadal in an interview
