Wimbledon 2012: Novak Djokovic Must Stop Rafael Nadal's Momentum
Novak Djokovic is still the world's No. 1 player, but he won't be for long if he doesn't curtail the momentum Rafael Nadal has built.
If Nadal wins Wimbledon, he'll be in position to leapfrog Novak Djokovic in the next month or so.
Nadal defeated Djokovic in the French Open Final in four sets. This was not unexpected, as Nadal is arguably the greatest clay court player in history.
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But, if he wins at Wimbledon, then he will have taken control of the sport.
Djokovic has held onto the No. 1 ranking since July 2011. But, since his win at the Australian Open, he hasn't been as dominant. Djokovic has been successful by most player's standards, but not on par with the precedence he has set for himself over the last year or so.
Djokovic was 70-6 in 2011. So far in 2012, he has already lost as many matches as he did all of last year. He is at a solid, but sub-Djoker, 36-6 in 2012.
Since the Australian Open, Djokovic has only won one of the seven tournaments he's competed in, while Nadal has won four.
This can be attributed to tennis season rolling through the clay court portion of the year, but they are wins nonetheless. It puts pressure on Djokovic to hold serve on other surfaces.
It isn't as if Nadal has no prior success winning at Wimbledon. He's won at the All England Club two times before. He knocked off Roger Federer in 2008, and he won again in 2010.
Nadal seized the top ranking following each of those two Wimbledon triumphs. If he wins Wimbledon this year, I believe history will repeat itself.
Djokovic may be the only player in the world who can knock Nadal off right now.
He's the only one that made him even look human at the French Open. If the two meet in the third Grand Slam final of the year, it won't technically be for the world No. 1 ranking.
But, by year's end, it'll likely be the biggest determining factor in the final rankings of 2012.
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