“The only problem is that they are my 2 favorite players” – Fans react as Novak Djokovic names Nadal as his chief rival is the post-Federer era

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Sarbik Dutta

Novak Djokovic with 21 Grand Slam titles is just one behind record holder Rafael Nadal, who has 22 to his name

Novak Djokovic has named Rafael Nadal as his biggest rival, now that Roger Federer has retired. Djokovic and Nadal have undoubtedly had the fiercest rivalry of the 2010s and we can expect it to continue in the next few years. Djokovic and Nadal have played some historic matches over the last decade, including the final of the 2012 Australian Open – the longest Grand Slam final in recorded history.

Rafael Nadal vs Novak Djokovic
"The only problem is that they are my 2 favorite players" - Fans react as Novak Djokovic names Nadal as his chief rival is the post-Federer era 2

“Well, Rafa is still there, right? As long as he plays, my biggest rival is Rafa”, Djokovic told journalists when asked if World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz is his biggest rival in the post-Federer era. As things stand, Djokovic and Nadal have faced each other 59 times, including in all four major finals, with Djokovic leading 30–29 overall.

Some of their matches are considered being classics and among the greatest matches of all time including the 2009 Madrid Masters semifinal, 2011 Miami Masters final, the 2012 Australian Open final, the 2013 French Open semifinal, 2018 Wimbledon semifinal and the 2021 French Open semifinal.

Fans react to Djokovic stating that Nadal is his biggest rival

Let us take a look at what fans have to say about the rivalry between Nadal and Djokovic.b

“Considering Alcaraz is one of the few players to have a positive H2H against Djokovic, maybe he should reconsider his answer”, joked a fan.

“The only problem is that they are my 2 favorite players lol”, wrote another fan.

“Can you imagine Rafa and Djoker weeping all over each other and holding hands at Rafa’s retirement ceremony?”, read another tweet.

“Respect to Nole for that answer, so soon forgotten Rafa has won AO & French literally this year & Novak Wimbledon. Alcaraz won US Open with Nole not there & Rafa injured with no match play. He’s great but it amazes me how desperate everyone seems to be to supplant Rafa for him”, tweeted another fan.

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