The year ending ATP Finals are set to host the pinnacle of Men’s tennis in London from 15th of November and it is here that Nadal, Djokovic, and the other top 8 of men’s tennis will eye redemption, will eye records, will eye wins, and most importantly will eye glory.
The indoor courts have never been the best of hunting grounds for Rafael Nadal, whose only indoor hard court title came way back in 2005 at Madrid. And while Rafa has qualified for the year-ending event every year since then, his hurdles have been many. From Federer Express to Djoker juggernaut to impeding injuries.
Novak Djokovic on the other hand has an entirely different experience with the ATP Finals and will be looking to add a record sixth title to his already inflated trophy cabinet.
What Nadal hopes to change this week-
This is the 16th consecutive time that Rafa has qualified for the ATP Finals but 6 of those occasions have been marked by injuries. The best Nadal has achieved at the Nitto ATP Finals is a runner-up finish twice.
“We can find excuses or reasons but, at the end of the day, the numbers are the numbers,” said Nadal. “I think I played less indoors than on the other surfaces, without a doubt… The indoor surfaces have not been the ideal surfaces for my tennis game since the beginning of my career.”
"I'm gonna keep fighting for it."@RafaelNadal has never won the ATP Finals.
Is 2020 his year? 🏆#NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/rqkcxK8gFu— TENNIS (@Tennis) November 13, 2020
”I think I am able to play a little better in the past couple of years indoors than I did at the beginning of my tennis career, without a doubt, but [these are] the numbers. I can’t say something different. I hope to change that this week.”Nadal added
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Obviously, the biggest hurdle in Rafa’s path is the arch-rival, Novak Djokovic. But even if he somehow manages to register his first indoor win over Novak in a decade, the challengers are aplenty.
Alexander Zverev and Stefanos Tsitsipas have taken steps towards realizing their Slam-winning potential, winning the 2018 and 2019 editions of the O2 respectively, whereas Rublev and Medvedev have been in the form of their life.
Novak on the verge of greatness-
With Roger Federer being a knee ending injury absentee, Nadal not being really a favorite at hard courts, and the NextGen still error-prone, chances are that this is Novak’s year.
A 5x champion of this event 🙌
World No. 1 @DjokerNole has arrived at the #NittoATPFinals! #ATPTour pic.twitter.com/bez1OcLQD8
— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 12, 2020
With a 39-3 win record in 2020, Djokovic will be chasing a record-equalling 6th ATP Finals win, a win that would put him on par with Roger Federer’s all-time record.
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ATP Finals draws are here- Tsitsipas, the defending champion, joins Nadal in group of Death
