Nadal Dishes on Federer and Djokovic Rivalries Like Never Before

By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday March 13, 2025

On the “Served with Andy Roddick” podcast, Rafael Nadal joins the previous US Open champion for a particularly candid interview. Rafa talks for an hour with Roddick and all the interview is nice.

However when the dialog turned to Nadal speaking about his Large Three rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, ears are certain to perk up. Undecided we’ve ever heard Nadal discuss concerning the nuts and bolts of his tennis this fashion. As a result of when he performed he was at all times frightened about giving up an excessive amount of of his ways.

Now that he’s retired he can lastly converse frankly about what he was coping with when going through these two giants of the sport in probably the most unimaginable period that males’s tennis has ever seen.

Test the complete episode under:

And listed here are some unimaginable snippets that we’ve transcribed for you:

Nadal on Why Federer-Nadal was extra engaging to followers than Djokovic-Nadal

In my view that’s why the rivalry with Roger was a bit of bit extra engaging for the followers, than Novak in opposition to me. Even when I performed extra instances with Novak, and we performed precisely the identical variety of vital matches, or much more. As a result of with Roger I believe the technique was extra clear.

Nadal on the ways of Federer vs Nadal

I used to be attempting to do one factor, he was attempting to do one other. Ultimately I used to be attempting to kill his backhand on a regular basis, and even for me, if I had the possibility to play the shot down the road, I used to be saying to myself: Okay, when I’ve to play the shot down the road it’s just for two causes: one, for the winner. The opposite is as a result of I must get him away from that facet to create more room once more.

And he was attempting to keep away from that.

He was attempting to play aggressively. Everytime when he was hitting his forehand I felt like I needed to step again, as a result of his forehand, for me, is the most effective that I performed in opposition to. It was a bit of bit extra like a chess match. Everyone knew what was going to occur, everyone knew what the technique was going to be. After which when he was taking part in very nicely, he beat me, after I was taking part in nicely I beat him. At the start of my profession, I beat him extra on clay and on hardcourts it had been rather more tough.

Nadal on why 2017 Federer was probably the most tough model of Federer he ever confronted:

Then arrived the second that I used to be capable of beat him on arduous courts a few instances. After which on the finish of his profession I believe he made a step ahead. He was taking part in rather more aggressively and, for me, he was making a mistake in opposition to me firstly of his profession, by taking part in along with his backhand topspin, which gave me the possibility to maintain hitting forehands in opposition to his backhand. Then on the finish of the profession he began to go in and take extra danger.

For me, truthfully in 2017, for some time it was the most effective stage of his profession – for me. You felt that you just had been in his arms. After all on hardcourts. On clay, it was little bit completely different. He performed very, very aggressively and his serve was so tough to learn for me, it was very tough to foretell what was occurring.

Nadal on what made the Djokovic rivalry completely different:

Towards Novak it was a bit of bit completely different. We are able to have a technique, however on the finish it’s about… I must play nicely. We don’t play the identical type after all, however there was not a transparent technique like I had in opposition to Roger, the place I’d injury his backhand. Towards Novak I didn’t have that feeling. The sensation was that I would wish to play very nicely for a very long time, and know that I needed to modify issues.

Nadal on why Djokovic had the most effective ball management ever

I couldn’t play too many instances in opposition to his backhand, particularly excessive balls as a result of then he takes the ball faster and places you in a really tough place, so I began to make use of the slice extra in opposition to him, and generally it labored for me nicely, and generally in opposition to Novak it was good for me to play to the center. Don’t give him a whole lot of angles. With Novak while you had been capable of open him, in case you don’t actually create a whole lot of injury, he was capable of open you extra. When it comes to management – ball management – I believe he’s the most effective I ever performed, and that I ever noticed.