French Open Lookahead: Djokovic, Nadal renew rivalry in QF

In this image taken Wednesday June 7, 2006, Spain's Rafael Nadal, right, shares a word with Serbia's Novak Djokovic at the net after Nadal won a quarter final match during the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris. Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic meet at the net after their 2006 French Open quarterfinal, which Nadal won when Djokovic stopped playing a few points into the third set because of a bad back. That was their first meeting on tour. Their 44th will be Wednesday in the 2015 French Open quarterfinals. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File) In this image taken Wednesday June 7, 2006, Spain's Rafael Nadal, right, shares a word with Serbia's Novak Djokovic at the net after Nadal won a quarter final match during the French Open tennis tournament at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris. Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic meet at the net after their 2006 French Open quarterfinal, which Nadal won when Djokovic stopped playing a few points into the third set because of a bad back. That was their first meeting on tour. Their 44th will be Wednesday in the 2015 French Open quarterfinals. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File)

By Associated Press June 2, 2015 4 min read

PARIS (AP) – Maybe it’s because Novak Djokovic was only 19 at the time, young and full of bravado.

Or perhaps it’s because he simply was saying aloud what he certainly hoped, but couldn’t be absolutely positive, was true.

Then again, there’s also the possibility that Djokovic knew he had conjured up more winners that day than his opponent, despite playing with an aching back that led the Serb to quit a few points into the third set after losing the first two.

Whatever the case, it’s fascinating to go back and read Djokovic’s declaration on the evening of June 7, 2006, after facing a certain guy by the name of Rafael Nadal in the French Open quarterfinals: “He’s the best on this surface, but he’s not unbeatable. That’s for sure.”

Djokovic, ranked 63rd at the time, had never been that far at a Grand Slam tournament. He hadn’t faced Nadal before, either.