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Rome: Djokovic v Nadal in another blockbuster final

  • Matt Trollope

In the latest installment of their compelling rivalry, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will clash for the sixth time in a Rome Masters final after both came through their semifinals on Saturday.

World No.1 Djokovic was required to produce an enormous physical and mental effort, recovering from the brink to beat Stefanos Tsitispas in the quarterfinals – a match held over from the previous day due to rain – then overcoming local favourite Lorenzo Sonego in three sets to advance to the final.

There, he will meet nine-time Rome champion Nadal, who beat surprise semifinalist Reilly Opelka 6-4 6-4.

The women’s final will see reigning Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek take on the resurgent Karolina Pliskova, who reached her third straight Rome final thanks to a three-sets win over Petra Martic.

Like Djokovic, Swiatek was required to complete two matches on Saturday; the Polish star saw off fifth seed Elina Svitolina 6-2 7-5 in the quarters before beating fellow teenager Coco Gauff 7-6(3) 6-3 to advance to her third career clay-court final in just her seventh tour-level tournament on the surface.

Incredibly, Nadal, Pliskova and Swiatek have all saved match points this week to arrive in the Rome finals.

Rivalry renewed

While Djokovic has not faced a match point so far, it looked unlikely he would eventually set a 57th meeting with Nadal, given the precarious position he found himself in against Tsitsipas.

Their quarterfinal resumed on Saturday with the Greek leading by a set and a break, and Tsitsipas extended that lead to 6-4 4-2 before Djokovic stormed back to force a third. 

In the final set, Tsitsipas led 3-1 then broke Djokovic to serve for the match at 5-4, but still could not subdue the Serb, who escaped to win in three hours and 14 minutes.

Against Sonego in the semifinals, Djokovic had the opportunity to close out a straight-sets win when he held a match points while serving for a 6-3 7-5 victory; he also led 4-2 in the subsequent tiebreak before Sonego snatched it away.

Djokovic eventually won 6-3 6-7(5) 6-2 against a player bidding to become the first Italian champion in Rome since Adriano Panatta 45 years ago.

"I don't have much time (to recover), I played a lot of tennis,” Djokovic commented. 

“Hopefully I'll have fresh legs, because that's what I definitely will need. It's necessary in order to have a chance against Rafa.

"He also had some tough matches. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be fresh and I'll give it all."

After a tense fourth game of the opening set during which a free-swinging Opelka generated four break points, Nadal eventually got on top of the towering American in what was his 500th career match on clay.

He will play for a 10th title in the Italian capital on Sunday, while Djokovic is aiming for his sixth.

“A lot of positive things I did on court this week and it is important for my confidence to be back in such an important final like this one,” said Nadal, who saved two match points to beat Denis Shapovalov in the third round.

Either Djokovic or Nadal have appeared in every Rome final dating back to 2005. 

Swiatek v Pliskova in women’s final

It was a resounding day of performances from Swiatek, who looked vastly improved from the player who struggled through her earlier matches in Rome.

The world No.15 was down 3-5, 0-40 in the first set of her second-round win over Madison Keys, and saved two match points to beat Barbora Krejcikova in the last 16.

But straight-sets wins over Svitolina and Gauff on Saturday proved the Pole has rediscovered some Impressive form on her favoruite surface.

"I felt really good today; it's a big difference between my previous matches and today," said Swiatek, who is projected to crack the top 10 if she beats Pliskova in Sunday’s final.

"I was able to beat Elina, so that shows that my game is here, I'm ready for anyone. It gave me a real confidence boost."

Pliskova, who stared down three match points against Jelena Ostapenko in the quarterfinals, overcame Martic 6-1 3-6 6-2 – marking a complete turnaround in her 2021 season form.

The Czech had not gone beyond the quarterfinals in any of her eight events, entering Rome with a lukewarm 10-8 win-loss record. 

Yet now, she will be playing for her second title in Rome in three years, after the 2019 champion struck 37 winners to seal her semifinal victory in under two hours.