Novak Djokovic is definitely the man to beat now that he has defeated Rafael Nadal for the Madrid Open title on Sunday.
His first clay win over Nadal after facing off against the top-ranked Spaniard on the surface ten times, the victory is made even more spectacular since this extends Djokovic’s unbeaten winning streak that started at the beginning of the season. This is also his third overall victory over Nadal in a finals match.
The match started rough for both players, with Djokovic starting slow, wasting his 4-0 lead in the first set before recovering to end Rafa’s 37-match winning streak on clay. This is the Serb player’s sixth title for 2011, surpassing Bjorn Borg’s record in 1980, and trailing behind John McEnroe’s record of 42-0 season opening in 1984.
Nadal was a gracious loser, saying, “I came up against a great player obviously - he’s having a monster year,” Nadal said. “He was better, you have to accept that.”
With finals matches between him and Djokovic becoming commonplace, it was never unlikely to see Djokovic finally beating the top-ranked Spaniard on clay. Nadal had previously lost to Djokovic in the Miami and Indian Wells finals at the early part of the year. Nadal also commented that although he is way ahead of Djokovic in the rankings, if he keeps up his performance he could very well take over the number one spot.
“Unbelievable,” the Serb commented on his winning streak. “I stepped onto the court today believing I could win. I needed to be aggressive and it was a great match.” Djojovic went home $849,000 richer, while Nadal took home $395, 996 consolation check.