Poll: Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal In The French Open QFs, Who’s Your Pick?

I think this time novak going to win he wanted more than rafa who has not one but 9

June 1st, 2015 at 6:04 pm

I don’t know who wants it more but I think Novak gets through this time. If Nadal does get through, his confidence will be so high I’m not sure anyone will take more than 3 games a set off him in the semis and finals.

But, I’m with Judee here. I’m picking Novak to get this thing done in 3 very tight sets…though I’d prefer Rafa win the whole thing. Winning one slam 10 times is historic in the context of sport.

June 1st, 2015 at 6:31 pm

No1e with CRUSH CRUSH CRUSH the rat! IDEMOOOOOOO!

June 1st, 2015 at 6:33 pm

i meant to say that if rafa going to loos it is not the end of the world some day he has to loose and novak deserve to win at least one and this is his chance

June 1st, 2015 at 7:21 pm

Most anticipated match of the year! Easily.

Most anticipated grand slam QF match ever? Quite possible. Oh boy, here we go!

I think Rafa has a slight edge, his FO record is very intimidating.

On the other hand, Novak is so strong mentally.

Go Novak!

June 1st, 2015 at 9:45 pm

i am very excited!
good luck to novak: win or lose, he’s the greatest to me. :)
let’s hope for quality stuff…
or a rout by nole. ha ha.
(c’mon i know that’s not gonna happen so don’t freak out)
ajde, idemo!

June 1st, 2015 at 10:06 pm

I want Nole to win it but rafa is still the favorite until and unless Nole takes it from him.

June 1st, 2015 at 10:26 pm

Top 10 reasons that Novak Djokovic deserves to win RG 2015:
1. Djokovic has been the best player at RG never to have won*.
2. Nobody has beaten Rafa on clay as many times as Djokovic.
3. This will be Djokovic’s 7th clash with Rafa at RG. That is 6 losses in the 9 tournaments that Rafa has won. No other player faced Rafa so many times at RG.
4. Nobody else has come close to beating Rafa at the French Open (2013 SF went to 9-7 in the fifth). The only other players to win more than 1 set against him in 11 years have been Isner and Soderling.
5. Djokovic’s slam record is OUTSTANDING. He has made the quarter finals or further 31 times out of the 33 _consecutive_ grand Slam tournaments he has played. only Fed has a better record.
6. Djokovic is coming off the best 8 months of any tennis players career.
7. Djokovic has had the best match stats at this tournament so far, despite having the highest-ranked opponents.
8. Djokovic still has a realistic shot at being the only player in the Open era to win a calendar Slam (good for tennis!).
9. Djokovic should not have to pay for the fact that Rafa played poorly this year and is ranked lower.
10. This might be the best (last?) shot Djokovic has to add the French Open to his list of titles won. A player of his calibre deserves this.

*see http://bit.ly/1RGmCzv

June 1st, 2015 at 10:58 pm

Let’s hope for the best, but in sport, nobody deserves nothing beforehand. You have to win, that’s all that counts.

Rafa is the big favourite here, but I hope Novak will play valiantly.

June 1st, 2015 at 11:14 pm

@stu

Yes, yes, yes and indeed. :-)

June 1st, 2015 at 11:19 pm

oh wow stu: cool list and how great to “see” you.

June 1st, 2015 at 11:52 pm

Finally, the block buster match we were all earnestly waiting for is set to arrive. Pity that happen to be in a quarter final and yet a Novak Vs Rafa encounter is always a Tennis Fan’s delight and one that keeps every one in the edge of their seats where the two Gladiators are evenly matched and give out their best to outwit another on the court.

From the records above amassed by Rafa on the Clay Courts, they look heavily imposing, stellar exemplary or even a shade lot ridiculous to unnerve and shackle the opponent’s ray of hope and squeeze his confidence levels when he is up against inarguably the GREATEST PLAYER OF CLAY”. So, the task before Novak appears to be gigantic as if he manages to beat Rafa on the D day, he will be just the second player to beat him at Rolland Garros after all these years when Rafa reigned Supreme here and strode like an Emperor.

So, how it will all stack up on the D-day ? I feel by the current state of form of both the players, Novak starts as a slight favourite for probably the first time he has played him here. In the past, he played Rafa here many times to lose but he was never the favourite. That is a huge positive as well as a negative. Positive in the sense that being a favourite always provide you that feeling of invincibility and invest you with the wherewithal to intimidate the opponent. Negative in the sense that it will put added pressure and impose a burden wherein you are expected to win and that might have a detrimental influence in your mind. But, Champions like Novak have been in this situation before and they know what to do.

Coming to the match, I feel that although the edge is with Novak, it is going to be really really tough. In a five setter, Rafa is very difficult to dislodge especially on this surface where he is the undisputed King. But, Novak is the player who can do it for he has invoked a sense of apprehension, anxiety and doubts cast in Rafa’s camp as he has been the player who Rafa fears the most. Their H2H where Novak has managed to turn the tables of late tells its own story of the way he is dominating Rafa. The only hitch here is that on Rolland Garros, he is yet to beat Rafa and that might cast a spell on him.

Nevertheless, I feel that this match will be a five setter with Novak prevailing and emerging as the second player to beat Rafa at this venue which just goes to show the Octopussian tentacles spread by Rafa all these years.

June 2nd, 2015 at 12:34 am

Rafa has pointed out, very sensibly IMO, that the winner of his QF match is not necessarily going to hold the Coupe de Mousquetaires come Sunday.
Now there’s some food for thought!

June 2nd, 2015 at 4:35 am

nadal will take the day
he’s a champion of champions

June 2nd, 2015 at 4:37 am

@courbon,
If you are around, knowing that you are musician (muzikant), another rock (pop) legend from 60s/70s has joined the stars in the sky, you were not, or maybe were just born when this group was at the top of Yugoslav (Serbian) rock scene, this was recorded more than 40 years ago:

RIP +Vladimir Furduj Furda+

http://youtu.be/O-muYOg01is

June 2nd, 2015 at 4:46 am

This is going to be an easy win for Nole.

June 2nd, 2015 at 5:43 am

To be honest, this time, novak will beat rafa easily.

June 2nd, 2015 at 5:50 am

Rick. Are you a pundit now? When did you acquire your skills?

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:06 am

Those who think that this is going to be easy for nole, i believe they have not learn their lesson in a decade.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:16 am

Soooo, Mr Jack Sockss was over the 20 seconds 66% of the time but never received a TV! What are these Umpires playing at?

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:19 am

I would like for Rafa to win and create history, a record of 10 FO championships, I doubt will ever be broken. However, as we have seen from other champions, some records can be broken, but I’m hoping not this one.

I would like to watch a very well played match, not a lopsided one or a rout, as some would prefer. Tennis is about all fans’ enjoyment, not a few.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:48 am

Because of this Nadal-Djokovic quarterfinals encounter, whoever of the 8 quarterfinalists emerges as the eventual FO champion will be the happiest grand slam champion in years.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:51 am

I think Nadal is destined to set a mind blowing record at the French Open that will be untouchable forever. That will perhaps be the greatest legacy any tennis player can leave behind, a double digit title record in any single major.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:58 am

I think Nadal is destined to set a mind blowing record at the French Open that will be untouchable forever. That will perhaps be the greatest legacy any tennis player can leave behind, a double digit title record in any single major.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:58 am

Oops! Double posts, as in double digits! This must be a sign. :-)

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:59 am

Lol Markus, it’s certainly a sign you banged that “enter” button twice…;-)
Nadal is already the GOAT on clay. Win or lose this one he has already left an untouchable legacy IMHO.

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:10 am

@Markus, and @Margot, the second enter was an affirmative, as in a sign! Lol.

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:24 am

This would be epic fall for Djokovic, with tears and sweat, he will have to say good bye to French open. One more failure and one more heartbreak. Advance commiseration to Djokovic fan. By the way I am a Novak hater or Rafa fanatic. I’m just stating the inevitable. I think if djokovic comes out with his best this match will be a cracker for us.

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:27 am

Yesterday I commented on how the tenor of our little X club here has changed: before the tournament so many were denigrating the slumping Rafa’s chances, but now that the Match has arrived many are touting the inevitable win.

Well, I was poo-pood yesterday, so I went and looked at the polls: Today, 43% think Rafa will win this match. Before the tournament, only 20-some% thought Rafa would win the tournament, whereas Novak’s 53% is basically unchanged!

Getting crowded on that bandwagon, hey? Don’t bump Fed off, he was there first!

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:40 am

For myself, my view changes by the hour, so I have nothing against changing one’s mind, I just find the psychology interesting: Rafa was fangless as long as it was theoretical, now he’s Clay Beast.

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:42 am

There is no guarantee that the winner of this match will win the championship. Both players will invest a lot in order to prevail against the most difficult opponent for each other, and that can drain you….and Andy Murray (maybe Ferrer) can take advantage in the Semis. And on the other side of the draw, all 4 players have reached at least a slam final.
Djokovic in 4
Murray in 4
Wawrinka in 4
Nishikori in 3

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:46 am

Oh, why is my clock so slow!

June 2nd, 2015 at 7:53 am

Look at the list of players for the quarterfinals, men and women. Notice the difference? Equal?

June 2nd, 2015 at 8:11 am

I dont understand Nadal being crowned favorite for this encounter going by the recent form he has shown. I mean its not as if Nadal will become his old self within a 2 day span. None of the matches he has played so far in this tournament suggest to me that he has got his old form back. He has been good in little patches but every other player manages to look good in patches.
For me its Novak’s match to lose.

June 2nd, 2015 at 8:25 am

I think it will be a 4 set match
either Nadal game will be broken
or Djokovic mental strength

June 2nd, 2015 at 9:37 am

Felipe

Would love AndyM. to be able to take advantage of a possible long, tiring match between the two main players – but I fear Andy may well be in a similar situation as either Noel or Rafa. i.e. EXHAUSTED.

-for Andy to beat David Ferrer on clay he may have to play 5 sets against a very determined David and could be even more “knackered” than the victor of Noel v Rafa.

PS: There was a poll on ITV4- Who would win the two quarter-finals from the top half of the draw. Evidently Rafa led Nole by a huge percentage and Andy similar against David—-I found it hard to believe.

June 2nd, 2015 at 9:48 am

Djokovic will win with Nadal not winning more than 10 games.

Rafa is the greatest clay court player ever by a country mile, and one of the greatest of all time, but sadly, his time is over.

If he wins, it will be a miracle. He gets so nervous he can’t even hold on the leads against lesser mortals. Against Novak ? No chance, sorry.

June 2nd, 2015 at 9:55 am

Nadal with relative ease. djokovic cannot touch Nadal on this court.

June 2nd, 2015 at 10:23 am

Well..my awful prediction towards Nishikori its been trashad by a super confirdent Tsonga, who came gun blazing and is literally blowing Nishikori off the court.

Wawrinka set up…i would love a Wawa – Tsonga semi….at leats 150 winners!

June 2nd, 2015 at 11:26 am

Only the stadium collapsing could stop Tsonga now…

June 2nd, 2015 at 12:33 pm

Seriously though. Hope no one was badly hurt when that piece of Chartrier went into the crowd.

June 2nd, 2015 at 12:34 pm

I’d really like to see Stan get another major but getting through Federer will be a very tall task. Hopefully it’s a great match. Two great match ups for the quarters…the obvious one and the all Swiss match up.

June 2nd, 2015 at 12:36 pm

Wow Stan has beaten Federer in straight sets!

June 2nd, 2015 at 12:38 pm

Sienna – “Nadal with relative ease. djokovic cannot touch Nadal on this court.”

======================
He was a net touch away from “touching” Nadal in 2013.

June 2nd, 2015 at 5:46 pm

If Nole wins, it is because Rafa playing bad tennis at the French. And Nole wasn’t dominating tennis that he should had, while Rafa was away last year. We had four different Slam winners in both2012 and 2013!

June 2nd, 2015 at 5:55 pm

Djokovic in 4 tomorrow. It’s the guillotine for Rafa!

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:02 pm

And Nole really should had won the 2012 Wimbledon, ans was beaten by the already aged Federer. And was troubled by Fed again last year. Besides that vintage 2011(because he was in Rafa’s head), for being number one. Nole usually ended up winning one. And he wasn’t being as dominated as Rafa and Fed were being number 1!

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:06 pm

And with the way that Rafa had been playing. Wouldn’t surprise me, if Nole wins in three! And I am happy to be wrong for this issue, even if Rafa doesn’t wins the French. Just beat the craps out of Nole. He doesn’t deserve the praise that he has this year, just because Rafa has been playing bad. And believe me the French will try everything to cheer Tsonga into the final.

June 2nd, 2015 at 6:18 pm

with the Federer loss the rafanatica are getting anxious. the are to releaved by Feds loss.

but I feel them in a way that things turn out ok for Rafa today.
and hopefully Wawrinka can throw some punches on sunday. because Tsonga would certainly falter.

June 3rd, 2015 at 2:10 am