When you’re facing a rival for a record 42nd time, there’s not much mystery behind your strategy and preparation.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have been facing off in quarters, semis and finals for the past six years and on Sunday they return to the same court that witnessed their very first meeting back in 2006.
The momentum has swung countless times since then.
Nadal would win five in a row against Djokovic, before the Serb would strike back with successive wins of his own.
Heading into the French Open final, it would seem Djokovic has the stats in his favour having beaten Nadal in their last four meetings.
The Spaniard, however, had the upper hand in their last three clashes at Grand Slams, including a five-set semi-final in Paris last year.
As Djokovic prepares for a match that would give him a dream career Grand Slam as well as a return to the top of the rankings, the world No2 says he is tactically ready for tennis’ ultimate showdown, in a tournament which has seen his opponent lose only once in 10 years.
"There is not going to be a significant difference in my tactics against Nadal comparing to other matches that are played, especially the one in Rome," said Djokovic.
"I’m going to try to be aggressive, because that is the only way I can win against him.
"It’s a very wide and very big court. He likes to have that visual effect, as well, because it appears that he gets every ball back. He feels more comfortable when he plays on the bigger court. That’s one of the reasons why he’s so successful here.
"But we played some really close and good quality matches the last two years here, especially the one last year and knowing that I was that close to winning against him the past two years gives me reason to believe that I can (win) this time."
Djokovic is the only player to beat Nadal three times on a Grand Slam stage. In fact, only five players have managed to beat the Mallorcan multiple times in majors.
Nadal seems to be peaking at the right time this fortnight, having played his best match of the year against Andy Murray in the semi-finals on Friday.
He acknowledges he has suffered some uncharacteristic losses on clay this season but says that in his current form, he wouldn’t have lost those matches.
On whether he feels Djokovic will have extra motivation as he seeks to win the only slam that has eluded him so far, Nadal said: "It is nothing new for (Djokovic) to be in the final. He has the motivation to win Roland Garros for the first time but, at the same time, he has the pressure to win for the first time.
"I have the motivation that I want to win the ninth, so I’m going to go on court with the same motivation as him."
