"Never seen Nadal so powerless at Roland Garros" - says Goran Ivanisevic

Novak Djokovic's coach Goran Ivanisevic said after the Roland Garros that he never saw Rafael Nadal so powerless.

The Croatian former player was asked about the match between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic at the 2021 Roland Garros which Djokovic won 3-1. He said:

“The match started almost identically to last year’s final. But this time it was like if Novak reset himself when he was 0-5 down in the first set. He nearly clawed his way back into that set and I knew that we were going to see a very different match going forward."

Ivanisevic was very surprised by the things that were happening in the latter sets as he put it:

“What happened in the second, third and fourth set… I have never seen Rafa so powerless at Roland-Garros. I feel like Novak could have won the third set sooner, but overall, his tennis was perfect.”

Even though he was surprised by the level Nadal showed, Ivasenivic was not shocked by the result as Djokovic had a clear plan heading into the match:

“Firstly, he was prepared to stay on that court for 20 hours, if that is what it took to win. In the 2020 final, Novak did not show up, he kept trying to shorten the points. This time around, he was willing to run and run, he was prepared for a physically gruelling battle."

Ivanisevic further added:

"Also, he was very focused when finishing points off. With Rafa, you attack and attack, and then he suddenly counterattacks, and you are in trouble. This time around, Novak believed in his shots, even when he was missing. Nadal could not do anything.”