Rennae Stubbs feels Rafael Nadal losing to Novak Djokovic at the French Open represents "a real changing of the guard"
During an appearance on the Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast, Rennae Stubbs said that Novak Djokovic's victory over Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros was a pivotal moment in the GOAT debate.
Djokovic disposed of the Spaniard 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2 in the semifinal and went on to win his 19th Grand Slam title. In the process, the Serb became the first man in the Open Era to achieve the Double Career Slam, and the only man to have beaten Nadal twice at Roland Garros.
In Stubbs' opinion, that match all but put to rest any doubts over whether Djokovic will go on to become the undisputed GOAT. The Australian felt that Djokovic beating Nadal in his own fortress was a clear sign that he had taken over from the 13-time French Open winner.
"Rafael Nadal losing to Novak Djokovic at the French Open - that was in my opinion a real changing of the guard of truly who the GOAT will end up being," Stubbs said. "The fact that Rafa lost was pretty crazy."
Merry Christmas Happy Covidays! Took a stab at a tour de force Year in Review with @rennaestubbs , here it is on Spotify open.spotify.com/episode/05rZz4… #tennis
Stubbs also referred to the third set of the match as the most intriguing set of tennis she's ever watched. The set lasted 93 minutes and despite Nadal clawing his way back from a 3-5 deficit, the Serb managed to claim it in a tiebreak.
Stubbs even suggested that if the match had been a three-setter, it might have gone down as the greatest in the history of the sport.
"The third set of that match is the greatest set I've ever watched in my life. It was not the best match ever, but it is definitely the greatest set of all time," the Australian said. "Maybe if we had best-of-three matches, that would have been the greatest match of all time."
Rafael Nadal's loss at Roland Garros was only his third in 108 matches
Prior to the match against Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal had played 107 times at the French Open since his debut in 2005. Only two of those ended in defeat - against Robin Soderling in 2009 and Novak Djokovic in 2015.
The Spaniard had reached the semifinal stage of the tournament 13 times before, going on to lift the title on every occasion. The 2021 semifinal was the first match Nadal had lost in the French Open after taking the opening set.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC DOES IT! 👏
He beats Rafael Nadal 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2 to book a place in the 2021 French Open final 🎾
In doing so, he becomes the first player in history to beat the Spaniard in the semi-finals in Paris 🔥
#NadalDjokovic #RolandGarros https://t.co/PSIynI4ShQ
Nadal and Djokovic's record-breaking 58th meeting lasted over four hours, even causing the French authorities to amend the COVID-19 curfew to accommodate its completion.
Also Check Out: Updated Tennis Schedule 2022