Novak Djokovic has reflected on his epic rivalry with Rafael Nadal after reaching the Australian Open final for a seventh time in his career.
The world number one produced a dominant display as he thrashed Lucas Pouille 6-0 6-2 6-2 to reach another Australian Open final.
After just under 90 minutes, the Serb secured a match with fierce rival Rafael Nadal on Sunday in a rematch from their six hour epic in 2012.
The duo have met on 52 occasions so it was no surprise when the six time champion had a lot of praise for Nadal’s run so far, “He has played impressively well throughout the entire tournament. He hasn’t dropped a set,” Djokovic said.
“He looked as good as ever on the hard court throughout these few weeks. I haven’t played bad myself last couple matches. I think that this finals comes at the right time for both of us. I’m sure we’re going to have a blast on the court.
“We can promise one thing, and that’s knowing both of us that we’re going to give absolutely everything out on the court. I think people will enjoy it. I will, of course, try to play as well as I have so far.”
The Serb also revealed that some of his losses to the Spaniard have made him change the way he approaches matches, “As I said, Nadal has historically throughout my life and career been the greatest rival that I ever played against on all the surfaces,” the world number one explained.
“Some matches that we had against each other were a great turning point in my career. I feel they have made me rethink my game. I had some disappointing moments where I lost to him. I think I lost to him nine times so far in the Grand Slams, and I lost some tough matches in finals and semis in French Open and US Open. I won also some great matches. Those kind of encounters have also made me the player I am today, without a doubt.”
The Serb leads the head to head 27-25, wit the duo sharing wins in 2018 after Nadal’s win in Rome while Djokovic had his epic win in the Wimbledon semi-finals.
But the one telling stat is that Djokovic has won all six of his Australian Open finals while the world number two has only won one of four times that he has appeared in the Australian Open final.
On thing is for certain though, both men will produce another epic match that will live in the memory for many years to come.
