Djokovic beats Nadal to reach Monte Carlo final
MONTE CARLO, Monaco (AFP) — Novak Djokovic moved into position for a potential fourth trophy this season as he reached his fourth career final at the Monte Carlo Masters yesterday with a 6-3, 6-3 defeat of Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic, the world number one and form player this season with titles from the Australian Open plus the first two Masters 1000 events of 2015 at Indian Wells and Miami, advanced into his 33rd Masters final with a 97-minute winning display.
He has won his last 16 matches.
Nadal, eight-time champion in the principality, played with enthusiasm, but appeared to still be suffering from the lack of confidence and elite fitness which has bothered him for months.
Today, Djokovic will take an 18-2 record into the final against Czech sixth seed Tomas Berdych, who deflated the finals dream of Gael Monfils 6-1, 6-4.
“I’m very happy with how I played against such a tough opponent. Rafa is the all-time best on the clay, it was not an easy match,” the Serb said.
“I played well; it was a relief to get this win. There was a lot of tension, it was tough to keep it all under control.
“I didn’t give him (Nadal) any comfort from the back of the court. I tried to mix up, always change the pattern, change the angles of my serve, off the baseline play, the rallies.”
Djokovic won the opening set after coming back from an early break down against Nadal, with the top seed claiming the set on a third set point.
The second pivoted on a massive 11-minute seventh game, which Djokovic won on a break for a 4-3 lead after Nadal lost a 40-0 lead.
Djokovic closed out the victory two games later with another break of the Spaniard as Nadal saved a match point before falling victim to a cross-court winner.