Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have formed arguably the greatest tennis rivalry of all time, and the pair are privileged to have shared such a legacy with one another.
The two tennis icons already hold the men's record having met 59 times since 2006, with a chance to extend that lead should they collide at the ATP Tour Finals in Turin. The end-of-year event presents both players with a chance to end 2022 on a high after each collecting major silverware already.
“I am really privileged to have the rivalry that we had over the years,” Djokovic told the ATP Tour website. “I think we respect each other a lot and we push each other to the limit and kind of motivate each other to go even higher. It’s great to be part of that era.”
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Djokovic currently leads their head-to-head record with 30 wins compared to Nadal's 29, but the Spaniard could level the score if they square off later in November. The latter's Finals got off to a sluggish start following a straight-sets defeat to American Taylor Fritz, denting his chances of advancing from his group.
Nadal started off 2022 in strong fashion and won both the Australian Open and French Open to overtake Djokovic as the most prolific men's major-winner of all time. However, it hasn't soured the Spaniard's respect for his long-time foe.
“I think I have to say to Novak, he’s able to be super professional, to control his body, to hold the passion. It doesn’t matter how things are going, he always keeps going until the end and that’s something very difficult, especially in a super long career after all the success,” Nadal said. “To keep having the passion and the love for the game, I think it’s something I admire a lot.”
Along with the recently-retired Roger Federer, Djokovic and Nadal make up two third of the 'Big Three' in men's tennis. Djokovic also features in the second-most common rivalry in men's tennis, having also faced Federer on 50 occasions.
Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova are the only professionals to have played one another more during the Open Era, having staged 80 matches between 1973 and 1988. To put that feat into context, Nadal and Federer were once believed to share tennis' best rivalry and only met half as much (40 matches).
With rumours of retirement rarely far from Nadal or Djokovic—36 and 35, respectively—it's likely we're witnessing the last stages of a feud that's lasted more than a decade-and-a-half. But for all the blood, sweat and tears exhausted in pursuit of greatness, the duo share a respect for one another that transcends the court.
