Ranked as the number 2 tennis player in the world, Rafael Nadal managed to defeat the number 1 tennis player in the world, Novak Djokovic, to win Sunday’s Italian Open in Rome for his first victory of the season along with his 9th title at the prestigious event.

The Italian Open was Nadal’s first clay-court final victory against Djokovic since the French Open in 2014. This was also the 54th meeting between the two tennis stars, and Djokovic currently leads by 28-26 against Nadal in all sessions.

Statistics Between Nadal and Djokovic

This was considered their 8th clash in Rome, and their 5th meeting in the final. Rafael Nadal currently leads 5-3 over Djokovic in Rome, and 3-2 in terms of finals in Rome.

The only tournaments that Rafael Nadal has managed to win more frequently than the Italian Open are the Monte Carlo, Barcelona, and French Open – all of which he has claimed a total of 11 times.

Rafael Nadal recently informed reporters that while a win is essential, he considers health and competitiveness more important than winning in his mind and that always improving his game is one of his biggest joys in life.

Novak Djokovic is still leading by 15-11 when it comes to all finals, while Rafael Nadal is leading Djokovic on clay by 17-7. Both these exceptional tennis players will now make their way to Paris where there’s even more up for grabs in the French Open.

Rafael Nadal will be looking for his 12th Roland Garros title, while Novak Djokovic will be looking to hold all 4 Grand Slam titles simultaneously for a second time in his tennis career.

Rafael Nadal’s Win in Rome

After Rafael Nadal won his 11th title a year ago at the French Open, Novak Djokovic claimed victories at the Australian Open, US Open, and Wimbledon, where he defeated Rafael Nadal in straight sets during the final to claim his 15th Grand Slam.

In more than five years, Novak Djokovic has been 13-3 over Rafael Nadal within the final of the Australian Open. All 3 of Rafael Nadal’s victories occurred on clay which included 2 in Rome and the semi-final of last year.

However, with his recent victory in Rome, Nadal managed to gain a massive confidence boost before making his way to Paris where he has managed to win 11 out of 17 Grand Slam titles.

In the match, Nadal looked like he was playing at his peak during the first set, while Novak Djokovic seemed a little off, allowing Nadal to hand Djokovic a bagel. This was mainly the first time that either of these players managed to take a 6-0 set against the other player in a total of 142 matches.

Should these two players meet again at the Roland Garros final in there weeks’ time, with Rafael Nadal leading 17-15 in the major count, the match could determine if Nadal will close the gap to Roger Federer or if Djokovic can close the gap of Nadal.