Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal react to potential showdown at Paris Olympics – ‘Probably one last dance’
Novak Djokovic admits facing Rafael Nadal at the Olympics would “be a spectacle” although both tennis greats acknowledged they first need to get over the first hurdle at the Paris Games.
Episode No 60 of the Djokovic-Nadal rivalry – the most prolific in men’s tennis in the Open Era – is on the cards as the pair could face each other in the second round at Roland Garros.
Djokovic, though, first needs to get past Matthew Ebden from Australia in his opener on the clay in Paris while Nadal will take on Marton Fucsovics in his first-round encounter.
The Serbian leads their head-to-head by the smallest of margins as he is 30-29 ahead although Nadal has won eight of their 10 matches at Roland Garros and is also 20-8 in the H2H on clay.
Djokovic was asked about the potential meeting with his great rival and replied: “It’s gonna be a spectacle if we get to meet,” he said in Paris. “Expect some fireworks on court, like the good old times… I hope we get to meet because it will probably be one last dance for both of us.”
Nadal, meanwhile, didn’t want to look past his first-round match with Fucsovics as well as his men’s doubles encounter with Carlos Alcaraz.
“Don’t focus on what could happen,” he said. “First we will begin with doubles and then we should be focussed on the first singles match against [Fucsovics], a really great player.”
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Paris 2024 gives Djokovic another opportunity to add Olympic gold to his impressive collection with his best performance to date a bronze medal, which he won at Beijing 2008, while he failed to medal at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
He arrived in France on the back of a difficult few months as he suffered a serious knee injury at the French Open and then bounced back to reach the final at Wimbledon, finishing runner-up to Carlos Alcaraz.
“I am very excited. I think the Olympic Games are a very important event. I can’t wait to represent my country. I have great expectations for this tournament. I lost in the semi-finals in Tokyo and I will try to improve on the results of three years ago,” he said.
“I feel good compared to and more ready than I was before Wimbledon. I had many opportunities to win gold and now I have to start taking advantage of them. The fact that I am not the bookmakers’ favourite is just a motivation for me.”