Why does Nadal prefer to play during the day and Djokovic at night?

“I wouldn’t say that’s disrespectful. Here at Roland Garros, Rafa has credit, he has won the tournament thirteen times and if he has a request they should listen to it, ”he said. Carlos Moya, champion of the 2008 edition and current coach of Rafael Nadalwhen knowing that the quarterfinal match against Novak Djokovic it will be played in the evening session.

“They don’t always pay attention to us, I don’t really know what influence we can have in these kinds of situations,” the Serb launched a priori, preferring the program he finally chose. Roland Garros. “I’ll just say that my request is the opposite of Rafa’s,” he said with a smile.

Why does Rafa Nadal prefer the day and Novak Djokovic, against him, the night? “I don’t like night sessions on clay. I’m very light, I don’t like to play on clay at night, because the higher the humidity, the slower the ball and it’s heavy especially when it’s cold. A big difference day and night clay games. And I’ve always known Roland Garros during the day “.

One of the unique features of Nadal’s tennis is that he shoots his ball as soon as it hits the dry court. It requires a height that forces the rival to find it above the head. In addition, in rounds and revolutions that make it difficult to control, sticking to the opponent’s racket and finding unexpected angles.

In the sun, the clay does not hold the ball, it helps to push it. Game conditions are faster. When night falls, the moisture is in the middle of the stage and soaks the clay, ‘holding’ the ball when it comes in contact. This prevents the pot from becoming too high and also offers more return response time. The instant slows down, also smoothing effects and revolutions.

Double effort for Nadal. The balls get fatter and heavier, they get wet. Djokovic has more punches, he hits harder, especially if his racket height is moderate. He also felt he could hit hard and drop the ball heavily.

Losing ‘Nole’ in his serving, it would have cost him more to move the ball, but against Rafa Nadal he knew that in the night conditions the Spaniard’s malignant potential was so low, no doubt its compensation that he may also suffer in some aspects.

Djokovic will return against Nadal in the 2021 semi-finals when night fell. The final of 2020 The Balearic Islands dominate here despite the fact that it was played out in October due to the coronavirus. It helped him rain. The roof was lowered, the balls remained dry and light, in Rafa’s desire to move his rival, more dangerous if he was correctly attached to the ground.

Ultimately one or the other had no effect on the resolution, they sent the rights to television. France Television broadcasts the tournament nationwide, with the exception of this nightly match game, since 2021, on Amazon. The public entity mentioned something in the public interest, which responded First video ensuring open and free broadcast for the territory of France. And Roland Garros took the glove on deciding one night Djokovic-Nadal and one day Zverev-Alcaraz.

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