Rafael Nadal believes Novak Djokovic will be the favorite when they meet at the Paris Olympics, following his hard-fought victory over Marton Fucsovics in the first round on Sunday. Nadal's participation in the singles was uncertain until the last moment due to a thigh injury, and he had to work hard for his 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 win. The 38-year-old, who has won 14 of his 22 Grand Slam titles on clay at Roland Garros, considers Djokovic the favorite for their 60th encounter.
"Situations are completely different for him, for me. He's been very competitive. I haven't been very competitive for the last two years, so in that case, I think he is probably the clear favorite," said Nadal, who holds an 8-2 head-to-head advantage over Djokovic at Roland Garros. "I'm going to try my best to bring my best to the court and then let's see how far I can go and how many problems I can create for him."
Nadal seemed to be in control after quickly winning the first set on Court Philippe Chatrier, but Fucsovics fought back. The world number 83 from Hungary improved after a slow start and pushed Nadal to a third set. Fucsovics had three break points for a 3-1 lead in the final set, but Nadal managed to withstand the pressure and regained momentum by breaking in the next game. A determined hold of serve brought Nadal closer to victory, and he eventually overcame Fucsovics' tenacity after two hours and 30 minutes.
Nadal, who won a singles gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a doubles title at Rio four years later, is competing in just his seventh tournament of 2024. He reached the final in Bastad last weekend but faced a setback in training on Wednesday, which threatened his chances of participating in a fifth Olympics. Nadal partnered with Carlos Alcaraz in doubles on Saturday, and despite heavily bandaging his right thigh, they won their first-round match in straight sets.
