Rafael Nadal can be forgiven for considering Novak Djokovic the favourite ahead of their 40th career showdown in the Miami Masters final on Sunday.
After all, the world No1 has lost all three finals he’s featured in at Key Biscayne – a place where Djokovic got his first taste of Masters 1000 success back in 2007, which was the first of three title victories for the Serb in Miami.
Djokovic and Nadal booked their spots in the final by virtue of walkovers, as both their opponents Kei Nishikori and Tomas Berdych pulled out of their respective semi-finals citing injury and illness, resulting in a unique scenario that is a first in ATP history.
The final will be the first clash of the season for the world’s top-two players, who split their six meetings in 2013, with Djokovic taking their last two in Beijing and the ATP World Tour Finals in London.
“My thoughts are always the same. The only chance to win against Novak is to play to the limit, play my best. Wait that he doesn’t have his best day. I will see. I know I have to be solid with my serve. I need to play aggressive, no doubt about that,” said Nadal, who is targeting a third title of the year, having triumphed in Doha and Rio.
“We are playing in a court that today probably is his favourite court. That’s hard, he arrives to this final with confidence after winning Indian Wells.
“For me, it is a very important result to be in the final of Miami too. After Indian Wells, to be able to compete for the title in the tournament where I have a lot of friends, a Latin crowd that supports me every day, that’s very important for me. To be in the final already there are 600 points that for me, at this part of the season, are very important.”
Nadal, who suffered back problems earlier in the season, will be playing his fourth final in five tournaments this year. He has only been broken once in 36 service games in Miami this fortnight and will be looking to post a 23rd victory in 40 encounters with Djokovic.
“In general I think I’ve been playing more solid than Indian Wells and Rio. And I played with better movements too. I lost my serve only one time during the whole tournament. And that’s very important for me on this surface. In Indian Wells and Rio I lost my serve every day,” said Nadal.
Djokovic’s route to the final included two walkovers, not just one, and while spending less time on court than Nadal could seem like a blessing, the lack of match play could also be a curse.
But the world No2 is not panicking.
“Well, it's not the first time it happens for me to have the opponent pulling out – maybe it's the first time I have twice in the same tournament. But it is the way it is, and you kind of have to deal with that,” said the six-time major champion.
“I have won Indian Wells, which gave me a lot of confidence, played a lot of matches, put in a lot of hours on the practice court, and hopefully it will pay off.”
Regardless of tomorrow's winner, all nine Masters 1000 titles and the ATP World Tour Finals will be held by either Nadal or Djokovic.
