Paris – In a highly anticipated second-round match at the Paris Olympics on Monday, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic may play each other one last time as the greatest tennis players of all time.
Including 28 finals, this match will mark the multi-time Grand Slam winners’ record 60th meeting in the tournament’s early stages. Nadal has fallen to 161st in the world rankings after a two-year battle with injuries.
Though Nadal, known as the “King of Clay,” leads 20-8 on clay and won their most recent match in the 2022 French Open quarterfinals, Djokovic, who has won a record 24 men’s Grand Slams, is hoping to extend his 30-29 lead in their head-to-head encounters.
It may be the 14-time French Open champion’s final match at Roland Garros stadium, and Nadal promised to “try to give (his) best and enjoy it as much as possible”.
The Spaniard may profit from Djokovic’s recent slump, as he hasn’t won a single tournament this year and is still healing from knee surgery following his withdrawal from the French Open quarterfinals.
While Nadal won an Olympic gold medal in doubles in 2016 and a singles gold in 2008, the Serb hopes to add an Olympic gold medal to his record Grand Slam victories.
After several top singles players, including world number one Jannik Sinner, withdrew due to illness or injury, Djokovic easily defeated Australian doubles specialist Matthew Ebden in the first round. Ebden went on to place in the singles draw.
Marton Fucsovics of Hungary was defeated by Rafael Nadal in three sets.
In addition to competing in the singles on Monday, 38-year-old Rafael Nadal is a member of the men’s doubles field alongside fellow Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.