Rafael Nadal: Rome Masters Victory over Djokovic Provides Confidence Booster

The heart of the Grand Slam season is upon us, and all signs point to tremendous summer for Rafael Nadal.

The Spanish star won the Rome Masters at the Foro Italico on Monday over nemesis Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-3 in a match that featured a complete performance from Rafa. His serve was crisp, his return game was spectacular and he seemed very mentally sharp.

Nadal forced Djokovic into multiple errors due to the extreme spin he was placing on returns and ended up being the calm one as Djokovic smashed his racket against the net post at one point, an action that gave him a conduct warning.

The most important aspect of the win for Nadal was beating Djokovic. He lost on the red clay at Rome to the world’s No. 1 player last year, and that set up a summer to forget for a player that had been the dominant force in the sport for the previous two years.

Heading into the French Open, Nadal has lost to the Djokster in three straight Grand Slam finals, including the thrilling Australian Open earlier this year, a match that latest almost six hours.

Getting the Djokovic monkey off his back is a huge mental hurdle that will catapult his confidence heading into the meat of the tennis season. Nadal knows he can beat him, and I’m not sure he felt that way last year.

With the French Open at Roland Garros scheduled to begin later this week, Nadal will take the clay court knowing he has won three-straight tournaments on the surface. The King of Clay has now won Rome six of the last eight years, and this comes after winning Monte Carlo and Barcelona.

When Nadal is mentally focused and keeping his emotions in check, he is the most dangerous player in the world.

Now that he seems to have regained his confidence, expect Nadal to walk away with the victory at Roland Garros for the seventh time in his career.

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