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Nadal: Facing Djokovic on hard courts became the ‘ultimate challenge’

Nadal reflects on why facing Djokovic on hard courts became his greatest physical test. and New York.

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Rafael Nadal has described why Novak Djokovic posed such a demanding opponent on hard courts and explained how physical issues later in his career made that matchup harder to contest. The two players met 60 times between 2006 and 2024, with Djokovic finishing their rivalry 31-29 after winning their final meeting at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Nadal won only seven of 27 hard-court meetings with Djokovic and had lost the last nine encounters on that surface; his most recent hard-court victory over Djokovic came in the 2013 US Open final. Reflecting on the contrast between surfaces and the toll of long battles, Nadal told The Athletic that matches against Djokovic on hard courts demanded the utmost from his body.

“I needed my body and my physical performance to the highest level to compete against Novak on a hard court,” said the 22-time Grand Slam winner.

He outlined how the matchup required different physical and mental resources than other rivals. “Roger was able to cut the points very fast with his serve, but Novak and me, our games are closer. He was better than me on hard without a doubt, but until 2013, 2014, I was able to compete against him the proper way.

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“Then later, when you have a lot of issues in the body, you lose a little bit of confidence in the movement. You start avoiding things that you feel you can’t do like before, because you feel that if you do this kind of thing, you can be injured.

“The mental part of that had a huge impact against Novak. I needed this extra energy in terms of movement, in terms of bringing my game and my body to the limit. And I was not able to produce that anymore.

“I was able to create more damage on other surfaces like grass, but needed to create this super-long battle in terms of physical demand. It’s not about playing long, I was able to play for a long time, it’s about the movement that I need to do to push him to the limit.”

Nadal also reflected on his relationship with the US Open, an event he won four times, and how New York felt early in his career. “I was a very emotional and intense player, a passionate player,” Nadal said.

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“So I felt very close to that amazing energy that New York produces, and the night sessions especially were unforgettable.

“For some reason, you have places that you find yourself well and are comfortable. New York, at the beginning, I was not that comfortable.

“I worked hard to change that feeling and I achieved that feeling. At the end, I felt great every time I arrived there.”

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Analytics & Stats ATP Finals

Race to Turin Tightens: Alcaraz Leading as Field Narrows

Alcaraz leads Race to Turin after US Open; Djokovic, Zverev and Auger-Aliassime contend. strong duel.

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Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner are the only players who have secured places at the ATP Finals in Turin. Alcaraz qualified on July 8 after finishing runner-up at Wimbledon and Sinner clinched his spot on August 8. Alcaraz holds a commanding 2,590-point lead over Sinner following his US Open title run, making him the clear favourite to claim top-seed status.

With the Race to Turin cutoff sitting at 5,395 points, six places remain open. Novak Djokovic and Alexander Zverev are closing in and each need another 1,215 points to qualify. It remains to be seen if Djokovic will play should he qualify as he opted to skip the ATP Finals last year despite being the defending champion.

Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz, Alex de Minaur and Lorenzo Musetti currently occupy the other spots inside the top eight. Those ranked ninth and 10th after the regular ATP Tour season will travel to Italy as alternates. Jack Draper slipped out of the top eight after withdrawing from the US Open due to injury.

Felix Auger-Aliassime has moved up eight places to No 10 following his run to the US Open semi-final. He sits 365 points behind Musetti in eighth and is within reach alongside Shelton, Fritz and de Minaur.

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Two ATP Masters 1000 tournaments remain before the Finals, with the Shanghai Masters next on the calendar and the Paris Masters at the end of October. Contenders can also earn significant points at ATP 500 events, notably the China Open, Japan Open, Swiss Indoors and Vienna Open.

Current Race to Turin standings (selected): 1. Carlos Alcaraz 10,540 points 2. Jannik Sinner 7,950 3. Novak Djokovic 4,180 (+2) 4. Alexander Zverev 4,180 (-1) 5. Ben Shelton 3,710 (-1) 6. Taylor Fritz 3,465 7. Alex de Minaur 3,145 (+1) 8. Lorenzo Musetti 3,070 (+1)

Also in contention: 9. Jack Draper 2,990 (-2) 10. Felix Auger-Aliassime 2,705 (+8) 11. Andrey Rublev 2,410 12. Casper Ruud 2,285 (-2) 13. Karen Khachanov 2,210 (-1) 14. Holger Rune 2,190 (-1) 15. Alexander Bublik 2,145 (+2).

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Analytics & Stats ATP

Alcaraz Reclaims No 1 After US Open Triumph as Rankings Shake Up

Alcaraz returns to world No 1 after US Open win; Sinner drops to No 2, major ranking shifts. Today.

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Carlos Alcaraz returned to the summit of the ATP Rankings after his victory over Jannik Sinner in the US Open final, a result that produced a notable reshuffle through the top 100. In a winner-takes-all match at Flushing Meadows, Alcaraz defeated the defending champion and reigning No 1 Sinner 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 to claim his sixth Grand Slam and move back to world No 1 for the first time since September 2023.

Alcaraz started his fifth spell as No 1 on Monday, taking his total weeks at the top to 37. Sinner fell to No 2 after 65 consecutive weeks leading the rankings. Alcaraz sits 15th on the all-time list for weeks at No 1 while Sinner is 12th. The Spaniard leads Sinner by 760 points and holds a clear advantage in the points he must defend for the rest of the year: Alcaraz will drop only 1,000 points, while Sinner faces 2,830 to defend after winning the Shanghai Masters and the ATP Finals last year.

Alexander Zverev remains third but trails Sinner by 4,850 points. Novak Djokovic rose three places to No 4 after reaching the semi-final in New York, with a slender 155-point gap separating him from Taylor Fritz in fifth. Jack Draper slipped two places after withdrawing from the US Open following his first-round win. Lorenzo Musetti rose one place to No 9 after reaching the quarter-finals.

Felix Auger-Aliassime climbed 14 spots to No 13 following his semi-final run, one place ahead of Jiri Lehecka (+5). Alexander Bublik moved up five places to No 19 and sits one spot ahead of Daniil Medvedev, who lost in the first round and dropped five places. Francis Tiafoe fell 12 places to No 29 after a third-round exit. Joao Fonseca reached a career-high No 41 (+3) after making the third round.

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Kamil Majchrzak became the new Polish No 1, replacing Hubert Hurkacz, jumping 14 places to No 62 after a third-round run. Leandro Riedi surged 268 places to No 167 after qualifying and reaching the fourth round. Coleman Wong became the first man from Hong Kong to qualify for a major main draw in the Open Era and reached the third round, jumping 25 places to No 148.

Current top 20 (points):
1. Carlos Alcaraz Spain – 11,540 points (+1)
2. Jannik Sinner Italy – 10,780 (-1)
3. Alexander Zverev Germany – 5,930
4. Novak Djokovic Serbia – 4,830 (+3)
5. Taylor Fritz United States – 4,675 (-1)
6. Ben Shelton United States – 4,280
7. Jack Draper Great Britain – 3,690 (-2)
8. Alex de Minaur Australia – 3,545
9. Lorenzo Musetti Italy – 3,505 (+1)
10. Karen Khachanov – 3,280 (-1)
11. Holger Rune Denmark – 3,090
12. Casper Ruud Norway – 2,755
13. Felix Auger-Aliassime Canada – 2,755 (+14)
14. Andrey Rublev – 2,610 (+1)
15. Tommy Paul United States – 2,510 (-1)
16. Jiri Lehecka Czech Republic – 2,415 (+5)
17. Jakub Mensik Czech Republic – 2,380 (-1)
18. Daniil Medvedev – 2,370 (-5)
19. Alexander Bublik Kazakhstan – 2,245 (+5)
20. Alejandro Davidovic Fokina Spain – 2,225 (-2)

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Analytics & Stats ATP WTA

Post–US Open rankings: Anisimova rises to No. 4 as Alcaraz returns to No. 1

Amanda Anisimova rises to a career-high No. 4 after US Open final; Alcaraz regains No. 1 spot. 2025.

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Amanda Anisimova moved to a career-high No. 4 in the WTA rankings after reaching the US Open final, leaping from No. 9 to No. 4. Her prior career-best had been No. 7. Anisimova also sits fourth on the Race to the WTA Finals and has a strong chance to qualify for the season-ending event.

“Yeah, it was actually a goal of mine in the start of the year,” she told reporters on Saturday, after the final. “Me and my agent, we were joking about that, that that would be a goal of mine, and it was kind of far in reach when I was starting off the year, but now I have a chance to qualify and play in it, so that’s really special.”

Anisimova began 2025 at No. 36. Her biggest ranking jumps this year included a rise from No. 41 to No. 18 in February after winning the first WTA 1000 title of her career in Doha, and a jump from No. 14 to No. 7 in July following her run to the Wimbledon final. She is one of only two women to reach multiple Grand Slam finals in 2025, alongside Aryna Sabalenka, who defeated her in the US Open final.

On the ATP side, Carlos Alcaraz returned to No. 1 after capturing his second Grand Slam title of the year and the sixth major of his career at the US Open. Alcaraz moved from No. 2 to No. 1, swapping places with Jannik Sinner after defeating him in four sets in the final. He begins his 37th career week at the top of the rankings.

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Several other notable moves followed the tournament. Novak Djokovic rose from No. 7 to No. 4 after reaching the US Open semifinals, his fourth straight Grand Slam semifinal and his highest ranking of the year; the last time he was No. 4 was last November. Felix Auger-Aliassime climbed from No. 27 to No. 13 after his second Grand Slam semifinal in New York; he is a former No. 6. Naomi Osaka re-entered the Top 20, advancing from No. 24 to No. 14 after her semifinal run, her highest ranking since she was No. 14 for two weeks at the 2022 Australian Open.

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