Novak Djokovic moved a step closer to a fifth BNP Paribas Open victory after defeating arch-nemisis Rafael Nadal in straight sets in Indian Wells. Nadal might never get back to the top, but in the last 24 hours he showed flashes of his former No. 1 self, and that’s enough to hold out some hope he’s finally turned the corner. The world No. 5 needed three sets to survive his opener against Gilles Muller and he even saved a match point during a fourth-round thriller against Alexander Zverev.
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The second semi-final at Indian Wells will be contested by Belgian David Goffin and big-serving Canadian Milos Raonic, who had each won their matches in the last eight on Thursday.
At the first Masters 1000 event of the year this week, he has dropped just the one set, against qualifier Bjorn Fratangelo in the second round.
“I feel like even when I’m not playing my best [this year] I’m able to find the answer and the solutions”. When winning the first set, Djokovic holds a 20-3 record, while Nadal holds a 20-4 record when taking set number one.
Breaks of serve were traded in the second and third games of an eagerly awaited showdown before Nadal later squandered a set point in the 10th game when he netted a forehand. “I going to try to follow this to keep going at this level”, said Nadal, who lost 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 to pre-tournament favourite Djokovic.
Djokovic heads into the final having won all but one of his matches in 2016. “If I am able to play weeks in a row at this level, then you start to think about the chances to compete for everything”.
“My approach is not I have to win this, I’m supposed to win this, but I’m going to win this”, Djokovic said.
“I think I played well during the week”, Nadal commented. Fish), 2011 (d. Nadal), 2014 (d.
“I managed to stay composed and serve well in important moments and just believed that I can win”, Djokovic told the press after the match. This victory came in a two-hour match against Goffin; Raonic now has a 2-1 record in their head-to-head meetings.
The injury flared up in his five-set semi-final loss to Andy Murray at the Australian Open and Raonic was unable to play in the Davis Cup earlier this month when Canada was crushed 5-0 by France.
Raonic pounded out 10 aces to reach the semi-finals at Indian Wells for the second straight year.
Japan’s top player continued to falter with the ball in hand, conceding his serve immediately at the restart, enabling Nadal to edge into a three-game lead without much stress. Djokovic and Nadal own a combined seven titles in the California desert.
The disappointment of the first set seemed to have drained Nadal and he produced a exhausted effort in the second set.
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ESPN has live coverage of Indian Wells finals day starting a 2pm ET with the women’s title match between Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka.
