Tennis Prose




Apr/22

7

Mouratoglou Says Djokovic Better On Clay Than Rafa

By Scoop Malinowski

Patrick Mouratoglou does not hide his admiration and respect for Novak Djokovic as a tennis player and this week he revealed a controversial belief that Novak is actually superior to Rafa on red clay. “When he is at his best, I think Djokovic is the best player in the world, even on clay. I know it’s weird to say that when you see the number of Roland Garros that Nadal has won (13), but if you look at the figures, Novak beats Rafa many times on clay.”

Mouratoglou, who just took over full time coaching duties for Simona Halep, senses the balance of clay court power and supremacy shifted during last spring’s Roland Garros four set win vs Rafa in the semis. “If they have to play each other in the last stages of Roland Garros this year, last year’s match will count in their minds 100%. Rafa is going to be tense and Novak will be much more aggressive because he will be more confident going against Rafa.”

I actually believe Mouratoglou is correct here. I have also long believed Djokovic was actually the superior red clay court player than Rafa despite the record. Novak squandered many wins vs Rafa on clay, or Rafa survived many defeats and amazingly escaped. All along Novak was better on clay but only last year did he finally prove it with the four set win.

This is a testament to how tough and feisty and formidable Rafa is especially on clay but in the end Djokovic finally mastered the puzzle last year. Nadal says he was injured after the loss, but in the actual match you see no sign or hint of any injury. Nadal was simply outplayed by a red clay late blooming machine which finally found the hardware and software, physical and mental formula to conquer the most dominant single surface force in ATP history.

In sports there is a cliche, “the better team doesn’t always win”, and so this logic would extend also to “the better player doesn’t always win.” Nadal plays with a balance of intensity, humilitym brute force, vicious urgency and also even a measure of insecurity. Perhaps the reasons for that insecurity were revealed at French Open last year… that deep down Rafa always knew Djokovic would one day master him on red clay.

All of which makes this year’s edition of the French Open all the more fascinating and intriguing. The stakes could not be greater.

Because if Djokovic manages to defeat Rafa again on Court Chatrier, there will be a new king of clay.

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2 comments

  • Harold · April 8, 2022 at 11:36 am

    Too funny! You said there are strong rumors that this guy paid to coach Serena, now he’s worthy of an opinion? Only because you want to agree with him. Nadal’s record on clay speaks for itself. If you want to argue, who’s better at this moment in time, ok. But career, it’s a foolish argument

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 8, 2022 at 1:46 pm

    Yes there is rampant rumors by INSIDERS that he paid Serena to appear as her coach. Same with Tsitsipas who snubbed him in favor of Enqvist. Other renowned tennis coaches have also been accused of paying players to appear as the coach or paid to coach them for business reasons, Saviano/Bouchard, Nick/Becker. This stuff is never talked about by the tennis media. I am fortunate to have a pipeline directly to several players, former players and coaches who share some intriguing info which I am most grateful for. This business move doesn’t disqualify these experts from having valuable opinions, observations and insights. Mouratoglou loves the sport and he knows the sport and I agree with a lot of his views of the sport.

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