5 intriguing Rafael Nadal - Novak Djokovic battles that have defined their careers

2011 Wimbledon Final - Djokovic def. Nadal 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3

Coming into the match: Djokovic was perhaps producing the greatest season in the Open-Era. He had won the Australian Open and 4 Masters Titles (Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Rome). He was 47-1 coming into the finals of Wimbledon. Federer has defeated him in the SFs of Roland Garros to hand Novak his only loss of the season and end his 43 match unbeaten run. Djokovic had taken over the No.1 spot in the rankings after beating Tsonga in the SFs of Wimbledon.

Nadal had made a relatively tough start to the season. At the Australian Open, he was trying to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win all the 4 Grand Slams, but lost to David Ferrer in the QFs (apparent hamstring injury). Although Nadal did manage to win his 6th French Open (also won Monte Carlo & Barcelona), he had struggled against the Serb losing 4 consecutive finals.

The Battle:

The current World No. 1 Rafael Nadal, the 2008 and 2010 titlist met the soon-to-be No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final. For two sets, Djokovic was superb hitting 22 winners past Nadal, who was unable to hit top form in lengthy baseline rallies. But Nadal hasn't won 20 straight matches at the All England Club for nothing. The top seed battled back to win the third set to raise hopes of a first two-sets-to-love comeback in a Wimbledon final since 1927, when Henri Cochet defeated Bill Tilden.

Both players exchanged breaks of serve at the start of the fourth set, before Djokovic regained control to complete a 6-4, 6-1, 1-6, 6-3 victory in two hours and 28 minutes of play to lift his third Grand Slam championship title. It capped a dream fortnight for the Serbian, who became the World No.1 after Wimbledon.

Reverberation: Djokovic finished off one of the Open Era’s greatest calendar season (70-6) by winning the US Open defeating Nadal in the final. He bulldozed the Spaniard in the entire season beating him in 6 consecutive finals. Nadal meanwhile had no answers to Djokovic’s onslaught even though he managed to win his 4th Davis Cup title with Spain.

2012 Australian Open Final - Djokovic d. Nadal 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5

Coming into the match: Djokovic was at the pinnacle of the ATP rankings as he entered the Australian Open in 2012. He had won the last 6 encounters against the Spaniard. Djokovic entered the match after winning a brutal SF against Scot Andy Murray in 4hrs and 50 min. Nadal was trying to get back in this rivalry and had gained some momentum after winning his 4th Davis Cup. He was through to his 2nd Australian Open Final after beating old nemesis Roger Federer in the SF.

The Battle:

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic extended his winning streak to seven straight matches over No. 2-ranked Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam championship final on record over five hours and 53 minutes. It surpassed the previous record of four hours and 54 minutes when Mats Wilander defeated Ivan Lendl at the 1988 US Open. In a pulsating contest on Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Djokovic rallied from a 2-4 deficit in the fifth set, to fight back and claim a dramatic victory. He continued to narrow the gap in his head-to-head against Rafa to 14-16. Nadal had never previously lost a Grand Slam final after winning the first set.

Reverberation: Though Djokovic managed to win the final, Nadal actually began to neutralize this rivalry and got back against the Serb. The Mallorcan Matador managed to win 6 of the next 7 matches against his arch-rival.

2013 US Open Final - Nadal def. Djokovic 6-2, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1

Coming into the match: Nadal was making a historic comeback in 2013 after an injury plagued 2012. He had won 9 titles (including his 8th French Open and also the Canada-Cincinnati double). He had lost just 3 matches all season and was attempting to win his 2nd US Open title.

Djokovic had won his 3rd straight Australian Open title (4th overall) but lost out in the SFs of the French Open to Nadal. He lost to Andy Murray in the finals of Wimbledon thus losing 4 of the last 5 GS Finals he had contested. He had also lost last 5 of the 6 meetings against Nadal.

The Battle:

In their third US Open final meeting (also 2010-11) and an Open Era record 37th meeting, Nadal exerted the early pressure, but it was Djokovic who turned the tables in the sixth game of the second set. The intensity rose early in the third set, as Djokovic broke Nadal in the third game only for Nadal to bounce back for 3-3 and ultimately break once again. Nadal stretched his lead to 3-0 in the fourth set and by the time he celebrated his 13th major crown, Djokovic had committed 53 unforced errors.

Spaniard dominated the extended rallies of five shots or more, winning 64 of 111 such points. The World No. 2 was lethal in the return game as well, converting on seven of 12 break point chances. Queen Sofia of Spain congratulated Nadal in the locker room after winning his second US Open crown.

Reverberation: Nadal regained the World No.1 ranking from Djokovic and went on to win 35+ matches on both Hard and Clay in the season (only player in the Open Era to achieve this). Djokovic had lost the last 5 Grand Slam finals out of the 6 he had contested. The Serb went on to reverse the losing streak against the Spaniard beating him 4 more times before losing in the 2014 French Open Finals. He also added German tennis legend Boris Becker to his coaching staff.