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5 times Novak Djokovic dominated Rafael Nadal on clay ft. 2021 French Open semifinal

Rafael Nadal is well known as the King of Clay with a record of 63 clay court titles including another record of 14 French Open titles out of his 22 Grand Slams wins, second only to Novak Djokovic's 24.

Over a two-decade-long career, the Spaniard has rightfully proved his mettle on the surface and is well ahead of any other tennis player in terms of reaching the records that he has created on the same. However, there have been times when a few tennis players have been able to get the better of the King of Clay and secured a few integral victories.

World No.1 Novak Djokovic, one of the Big Three tennis players of the Open Era and Nadal's biggest rivals, has an 8-20 win-loss record over the Spaniard on clay.

With that said, let's take a look at a few times when Djokovic dominated Nadal on clay.


#5 2016 Rome Masters quarterfinals

Almost a decade into their rivalry, defending champion Novak Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal 7-5, 7-6 in their quarterfinal encounter at the Rome Masters in 2016 where the Serb eventually lost to Andy Murray in the finals.

As suggested by the scoreline, it was a rather close match and while it could have gone either way, the Serb succeeded in getting the better of Nadal, who, despite leading 4-2 and 5-4 in both sets failed to get past Djokovic as the latter took two hours and 24 minutes to win.

Rafael Nadal at the 2016 Rome Masters
Rafael Nadal at the 2016 Rome Masters

#4 2013 Monte Carlo Finals

Rafael Nadal was defeated by Novak Djokovic 6-2, 7-6 in the semifinals at Monte Carlo in 2013, an event where Djokovic previously finished as a runner-up to the Spaniard in 2009 and 2012.

Through this victory, Djokovic ended Nadal's 46-match winning streak across eight years at the event and became the first tennis player to win eight out of the nine Masters 1000 events.

The Serb got the better of the Spaniard in a smooth 6-2 victory in the first set but faced tough competition from the latter in the second set which ended in a tiebreak favoring Djokovic.

Rafael Nadal (right) and Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters Series Monte Carlo in 2013
Rafael Nadal (right) and Novak Djokovic at the ATP Masters Series Monte Carlo in 2013

#3 2015 French Open Quarterfinals

At the quarterfinals of the French Open in 2015, Novak Djokovic became the second man after Sweden's Robin Soderling to defeat Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros which marked his first defeat at the Championship in six years.

Djokovic defeated Nadal 7-5, 6-3, 6-1 in the continuation of his 26-match winning streak and marked the latter's second defeat in 72 matches in Paris. Even though it was the Spaniard's most favorable surface and crowd, the Serb gave him only a few chances to take the lead and despite giving a tough fight in the first set, Nadal failed to continue with the momentum.

Novak Djokovic after winning his quarterfinal match against Rafael Nadal at the 2015 French Open
Novak Djokovic after winning his quarterfinal match against Rafael Nadal at the 2015 French Open

Speaking about the loss, Nadal said (via BBC):

"He was better than me. That's it. It's very simple."
He added, "When one opponent is playing better than you and is in better shape than you, that can happen."

Djokovic reached the finals but lost to Stan Wawrinka, thereby postponing his first victory at Roland Garros by another year.


#2 2021 French Open Semifinal

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic faced each other for the ninth time at Roland Garros at the 2021 French Open semifinal where the latter beat the Spaniard 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 6-2 in what turned out to be one of the most memorable encounters between two out of the Big Three of tennis.

This came a year after Nadal beat Djokovic to claim his 13th French Open title and 20th Grand Slam victory through which he equaled his long-term rival Roger Federer's record of the said number of titles. However, the Serb not only took his revenge on the Spaniard but also went on to win the Championship by beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the finals.

The match took a little over four hours. Speaking about the same, the Serb said (via The Guardian):

“Definitely the best match that I was part of ever in Roland Garros for me, and top three matches that I ever played in my entire career, considering the quality of tennis, playing my biggest rival on the court where he has had so much success and has been the dominant force in the last 15-plus years, and the atmosphere which was completely electric.”

#1 2011 Mutua Madrid Open Finals

Keeping up with his 32-match winning streak in the first half of 2011, at the Madrid Open, Novak Djokovic defeated Rafael Nadal 7-5, 6-4 which also marked the first time the Serb managed to get the better of the King of Clay at the said surface.

Two years ago at the same tournament, Nadal defeated Djokovic in the semifinals in a match that is regarded as one of the best ones at the tournament and the longest in the history of ATP 1000 Masters.

In 2011, while Nadal tried his best to challenge Djokovic, in continuation to a remarkable ongoing season, the Serb managed to get the better of his opponent after securing the first set with a tiebreak victory, following which he eventually bagged the second set as well.

Novak Djokovic (left) and Rafael Nadal after the 2011 Madrid Open final
Novak Djokovic (left) and Rafael Nadal after the 2011 Madrid Open final

Speaking about the match and winning against Nadal for the first time on clay, Djokovic said (via ESPN):

"I'm happy I can play the best tennis when I needed to and maybe that was lacking a lot in the past. Maybe that's what was missing against Rafa and Roger in the past tournaments."
He added, "Under the circumstances I was playing an unbelievable match. ... I stepped onto the court today believing I could win. I needed to be aggressive and it was a great match."

However, at present, it is Nadal who holds the record for the maximum number of Madrid Open titles (5).


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