The 2021 French Open men’s semifinal match between Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will surely go down in tennis history as one of the best and most intense ever.
It was an epic marathon match that lasted four hours and 11 minutes with Djokovic stunning the “King of Clay” with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2 win. Djokovic won the last six games of the match, breaking Nadal several times, including in the final game for the win. He’ll face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final Sunday.
It was a quintessential matchup between two of the “Big Three” men’s tennis players, as they ferociously fought for every point. The third set alone lasted about 90 minutes with Djokovic winning the tiebreak.
"One of the greatest sets of tennis I have ever witnessed."
Djokovic wins an incredible tiebreaker over Nadal at the French Open 👏
(via @TennisChannel)pic.twitter.com/nvDrNQeJaD
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 11, 2021
Despite 13 French Open victories, Nadal’s loss Friday was only his third defeat in the Grand Slam tournament, and it was the first time in his career he lost after reaching the French Open semifinals. Nadal’s career record at Roland-Garros is now 105-3, while Djokovic became the first player to beat the clay-court rockstar twice.
He's completed the toughest feat in our sport not once, but twice. 💪@DjokerNole defeats Rafael Nadal 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-2 to set up a final meeting with Tsitsipas.
How it happened: https://t.co/ykPM9ywSdd#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/Sj2SYt3UsO— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) June 11, 2021
It was one of the best tennis matches ever, and fans everywhere — including several players and other pro athletes — couldn’t get enough of it.
