The 28-year-old Djokovic and 29-year-old Nadal are tied at 23-23 in their career head-to-head, although the Serbian has had the clear recent advantage, having won all four of their matches last year in straight sets.
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The win also edged Djokovic in front in his head-to-head battle with Nadal with a 24th win in 47 matches.
The Serb dominated Nadal in every facet of the game and needed little over an hour to win the final, and with the Australian Open right around the corner, Djokovic once again looks like the man to beat. I am living the best time of my life and career.
Marchenko kicked off the tournament with a straight-set win against fourth seed David Ferrer, which was followed by another comfortable 6-4, 6-2 victory against Teymuraz Gabashvili.
“He played so insane with wonderful shots”, Nadal said of Kuznetsov via USA Today.
Nadal won 100 percent of his first service points in the opening set, 89 percent overall, and allowed only one break point, which he held. The loss prompted Nadal to declare that Djokovic is playing “perfect” tennis and that his level was above that of peak Roger Federer.
It was a commanding performance that will infuse the world No. 1 with confidence when he plays for his sixth Australian Open title later this month. The 20th-ranked Austrian punched his ticket to the last four with victories over James Duckworth, Denis Kudla, and Marin Cilic-two of which required three sets (vs. Duckworth and Cilic).
The Djokovic-Nadal rivalry, one of the most prolific in tennis’ Open Era, is the only one to have involved the finals of all four Grand Slams. But the real thing is that I had a positive week.
Fans hoping for a thrilling finale between Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in Doha instead got a demonstration of just how dominant the former is at the moment. “Being in the first final of the season in the first official tournament is something great”. The title would be a great start to the season for Djokovic, showing that he is going to be similarly tough to beat this season.
When these two met at Roland Garros in 2013, another classic ensued – one which had remarkably similar traits to the pair’s 2012 Australian Open clash. I am playing well, and I am going to work hard to try and be ready for Australia.
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“And knowing that across the net you have the player that you played against the most ever in your career adds more importance to that final”.
