Australian Open 2012 Finals: Why Nadal vs. Djokovic Is Best Rivalry in Tennis

Regardless of the occasion or location, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic make for a great show. The two are fast becoming the most exciting ticket in men's tennis and are on the verge of putting a stranglehold on the sport.

Sunday's Australian Open 2012 final in Melbourne will only prove that fact.

Djokovic and Nadal rank No. 1 and 2 in the world, respectively, and have met 29 times in their tennis careers, Nadal taking 16, but Djokovic taking the last six. The last two Grand Slam men's singles titles have come down to who else, but the Spaniard and the Serbian, with Djokovic taking both the 2011 US Open and Wimbledon in four thrilling sets each.

While Djokovic has the undeniable edge on hard courts, he leads 10-5 on those surfaces, Nadal has added to his legend with a dominant 11-3 mark against Djokovic on grass and clay surfaces. Djokovic leads Nadal head-to-head in Grand Slam finals, however, 2-1.

The youth of these two superstars is another reason why this rivalry is tennis' best. Both are in their mid-20s, Nadal is 25 while Djokovic is just 24, that means both could be going at it for another five or six years on the same level and at the same intensity.

Matches like their epic back and forth exchange at the 2009 Mutua Madrid Open demonstrate why this rivalry has the most to offer of any in the sport right now. In that memorable semifinal matchup, Djokovic and Nadal set the record for the longest match ever played in a the best of three sets, it lasted just over four hours.

With the exception of Roger Federer in both cases, Djokovic and Nadal are the only players to defeat each other in a Grand Slam final. That sort of competitiveness and bitterness is what has strengthened this rivalry over the past couple of years as Djokovic has caught up to Nadal. 

Although the top-ranked Djokovic is the favorite by many to take home tennis' latest Grand Slam title this weekend, nothing is for certain when tennis' best rivalry heats up on the sport's grandest stage. 

Quite simply, there are not two individual athletes on the planet who have been so dominant and so competitive for so long.