Rafael Nadal, the 2014 champion, will face top seed Novak Djokovic in Saturday’s Qatar Open final. This will be the 47th meeting between the two players and first of 2016.
Date: January 9, 2016
Match time: 6 pm local time, 3 pm GMT – United Kingdom / 4 pm CET – Spain, France, Germany, Italy /10 am EST – New York, Montreal / January 10, 2 am AEDT – Melbourne. To convert to your local time, use this website.
Watch online: 3pmstream
- Rafa has played 18 hard-court tournaments since last title on surface at 2014 Doha (d. Monfils)
- He reached Doha final in 2010 (l. to Davydenko) and SFs in 2011 (l. to Davydenko) and 2012 (l. to Monfils)
- Owns 7-11 record vs. Top 10 opponents since winning last Grand Slam title at 2014 Roland Garros
Rafa:
To be back in a final is always a great feeling, especially the first week of the season. For sure is important for me for my confidence, confirm that the end of 2015 season had been something realistic and this beginning of 2016 I am still playing well, so I’m able to already won four matches here and be in the final.
Djokovic on playing Rafa:
I guess it’s a pretty important match tomorrow, let’s see what happens. It’s been a long rivalry, but it’s an exciting challenge for both of us.
On head to head, Rafa and Djokovic are tied at 23-23. The last time our champ defeated Djokovic was the 2014 French Open final.
Here are the matches they have played against each other:
| YEAR | EVENT | RND | WINNER |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Indoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
63 63
|
| 2015 | Beijing China Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
62 62
|
| 2015 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
QF | Novak Djokovic
75 63 61
|
| 2015 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Monaco Outdoor Clay |
SF | Novak Djokovic
63 63
|
| 2014 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
36 75 62 64
|
| 2014 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Italy Outdoor Clay |
F | Novak Djokovic
46 63 63
|
| 2014 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami FL, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
63 63
|
| 2013 | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Indoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
63 64
|
| 2013 | Beijing China Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
63 64
|
| 2013 | US Open NY, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Rafael Nadal
62 36 64 61
|
| 2013 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Canada Canada Outdoor Hard |
SF | Rafael Nadal
64 36 762
|
| 2013 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
SF | Rafael Nadal
64 36 61 673 97
|
| 2013 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Monaco Outdoor Clay |
F | Novak Djokovic
62 761
|
| 2012 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
64 63 26 75
|
| 2012 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Italy Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
75 63
|
| 2012 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Monaco Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
63 61
|
| 2012 | Australian Open Australia Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
57 64 62 675 75
|
| 2011 | US Open NY, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
62 64 673 61
|
| 2011 | Wimbledon Great Britain Outdoor Grass |
F | Novak Djokovic
64 61 16 63
|
| 2011 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Italy Outdoor Clay |
F | Novak Djokovic
64 64
|
| 2011 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid Spain Outdoor Clay |
F | Novak Djokovic
75 64
|
| 2011 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami FL, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
46 63 764
|
| 2011 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells CA, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Novak Djokovic
46 63 62
|
| 2010 | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Indoor Hard |
RR | Rafael Nadal
75 62
|
| 2010 | US Open NY, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Rafael Nadal
64 57 64 62
|
| 2009 | Barclays ATP World Tour Finals Great Britain Indoor Hard |
RR | Novak Djokovic
765 63
|
| 2009 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Paris France Indoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
62 63
|
| 2009 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Cincinnati OH, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
61 64
|
| 2009 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid Spain Outdoor Clay |
SF | Rafael Nadal
36 765 769
|
| 2009 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome Italy Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
762 62
|
| 2009 | ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Monaco Outdoor Clay |
F | Rafael Nadal
63 26 61
|
| 2009 | ESP vs. SRB WG 1st RD Spain |
RR | Rafael Nadal
64 64 61
|
| 2008 | Beijing Olympics China Outdoor Hard |
SF | Rafael Nadal
64 16 64
|
| 2008 | ATP Masters Series Cincinnati OH, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
61 75
|
| 2008 | London / Queen’s Club Great Britain Outdoor Grass |
F | Rafael Nadal
766 75
|
| 2008 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
SF | Rafael Nadal
64 62 763
|
| 2008 | ATP Masters Series Hamburg Germany Outdoor Clay |
SF | Rafael Nadal
75 26 62
|
| 2008 | ATP Masters Series Indian Wells CA, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
63 62
|
| 2007 | Tennis Masters Cup China Indoor Hard |
RR | Rafael Nadal
64 64
|
| 2007 | ATP Masters Series Canada Canada Outdoor Hard |
SF | Novak Djokovic
75 63
|
| 2007 | Wimbledon Great Britain Outdoor Grass |
SF | Rafael Nadal
36 61 41
RET
|
| 2007 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
SF | Rafael Nadal
75 64 62
|
| 2007 | ATP Masters Series Rome Italy Outdoor Clay |
QF | Rafael Nadal
62 63
|
| 2007 | ATP Masters Series Miami FL, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
QF | Novak Djokovic
63 64
|
| 2007 | ATP Masters Series Indian Wells CA, U.S.A. Outdoor Hard |
F | Rafael Nadal
62 75
|
| 2006 | Roland Garros France Outdoor Clay |
QF | Rafael Nadal
64 64
RET
|
GOOD LUCK AND VAMOS RAFA!
Vamos Rafa!!!
A very best luck for the match rafa
Its very important to play novak before ao 16 to chalk out strategy and working out little things in game and gain confidence
In all a perfect tournament for rafa before ao 16
Looking at higher goals
Vamos rafa vamos
OLA & VAMOS DEAR RAFA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) Have a beautiful day & enjoy that fabulous good thinking inside knowing you have a solid game & all of us million of fans behind you & cheering you on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CONGRATULATIONS SWEETHEART ON MAKING THE Dohar FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) ENJOY IT ALL !!!!!!!!!!!!! It is another match, and it will be A GREAT MATCH FOR YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) You are playing UNBELIEVABLE BRILLIANT TENNIS WITH STRONG STRIKING RETURNS & BRIGHT SHARP SERVE & you have a POWERFUL MOMENTUM !!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) : ) VAMOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) I have 100% knowing you have ALL YOU NEED to make this a competitive strike on Novak. With your gorgeous STRONG MUSCLY LEGS & FANTASTIC ARMS plus your FITNESS & ENDURANCE you can make him run & run & run . VAMOS…………………VAMOS………………VAMOS………….. Please DEAR RAFA USE YOUR CHALLENGE whenever you have that INSTINCT TO DO SO. YOUR EYES ARE SHARP & ALWAYS BETTER TO CHALLENGE. by the way, yesterday, at the end of 2nd set, NOVAK was misusing his Challenge in order to gain time to breath! He was out of it, & challenged a CLEARLY “IN” ball from Berdych , just so he could stand & serve for the match.
Have a great time & VAMOS DEAR RAFA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Have lots & lots of fun……..GO…………GO…………..GO……… & take a joy ride playing your BEAUTIFUL TENNIS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) WE will be enjoying it with you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) Lots of love & happiness & great time!!!!!!!!!!!!!! : ) : ) : ) VAMOS…………………VAMOS………………….VAMOS……………………
To Move in Rafa or Move on, J Beer, Neruda and the few other TRUE Rafa fans, I doff my hat off to all of you for all your inspiring comments and analysis.You may not know it, but your TRUE & UNHYPOCRITICAL comments contributed to the improvements in Rafa’s game. Going forward, i think we should just ignore the comments from the likes of Maria, Elizabeth Howard and especially Fan Love who is really from another planet altogether.
In today’s match with Novak, while I do not expect Rafa to win, I’d expect him to at least take a set off Novak. Novak has completely dominated the rivalry winning 8 of their recent 9 matches. And sadly in 8 of those matches, Rafa did not win a set!
Like we the TRUE Rafa fans have always sang/reiterated, Rafa needs to urgently overhaul all aspect of his game if he wants to beat Djokovic. He can no longer depend on good, old Uncle Toni anymore. While Djokovic has a team of 8 trainers/coaches led by Boris Becker, Rafa has only a team of 2 people, Uncle Toni and Francois Roig.
Rafa and his team of 2 old peole appear not to have a solution to Djokovic. In a recent interview after his 8th straight loss to Djokovic at the WYF, a despondent Rafa could only say ”Novak cannot maintain this form for too long” So apparently Rafa’s solution is to wait until Djokovic drops in form before hoping to beat him! This is so sad!!! Meanwhile, Roger Federer has gotten Ivan Ljbucic on his side as a clear strategy to beat Djokovic and probably win another GS! Meanwhile, Rafa is sitting pretty waiting for Djokovic to drop in form.
It is particularly SAD that at the end of today’s match, the Nadal-Djokovic H:H will read 24:23 in favour of Djokovic. Until Nadal truly overhaul his game, he may not be able to beat Djokovic again, even on his beloved soil of Roland Garros.
Here’s a quote for you
“Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.” Benjamin Franklin
That’s exactly what Uncle Toni does – COMPLAIN about Rafa’s confidence problems, while doing nothing to fix the situation. My comments have focused on SOLVING Rafa’s problems, not complaining about them. Big difference.
Here’s another famous quote for those Rafa “fans” who pat him on the back and wave pom-poms while he self-destructs during the last of his prime playing years:
“There’s winning and there’s misery.” ~ Bill Parcells
Apparently Rafa – and some of his so-called “fans” – never got the memo.
If anyone is in the UK we can watch our Champ in the final on Eurosport 2 at 3pm GMT. VAMOS RAFA!
Yes and Rafa would be right to answer that as he has shown to us he is ,he has got to the finals last year in this tournament he was out first round. Wevhe beat Novak probably not at the moment but neither can the number 2 , 3, or 4 seed does that make them a failure NO. Even if Rafa won today you would still find something to put him down about as you always do win or lose. You really need to look up the definition of fan which is to SUPPORT or admire someone of which you do neither ,not only support them if they are top dog . Are you a fan of tennis yes , are you a fan of winners most definitely but mainly you are a fan of your own voice and opion .What you are not is a fan of Rafa,s . We don’t even have to read your comments to know what they will say the name you go by say it all
If Rafa suffers another 6-3, 6-3 loss to Novak tomorrow, will he still insist afterwards that he’s “improving, making progress and very happy with his performance this week”?
Answer – YES
Because, as Mark Twain famously said: “Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt.”
I’d like to know how much you would suffer if Rafa would win not just 6-3 6-3 but any others numbers LOL.
I’ll be THRILLED if Rafa beats Novak today. Especially if he does it convincingly. Because that would greatly improve his chances of completing his 2nd career slam later this month in Melbourne, making him the only player to accomplish that feat during the open era(1968-present). But truth be told, I’m not counting on any of that happening, based on recent matches between the two players, and their overall level of play right now.
Rafa you must remember, you are the best.🌷. Give it all you have. If you have done it earlier, I presume you can do it again. You are blest with all the love of your dear fans.
Just play intelligently. You a fighter, who never gives up.
V r all der to support u. Trust yourself. You have the best team, especially your coach tony uncle.
If under his guidance you won 14 grandslams, you can do it again.
Loveeeeeeeeeeeeeee always to you, Rafa 💗 💖 💛 💜 💓 💔 💕 💗 💘.
Yeah right. Just like Serena Williams won all those slams under her mother’s guidance. “Titular coach” – google it.
Rafa, you have a great game, mentality, confidence and coach, VAMOS!!!!!!!
I was able to watch Doha, Brisbane, and Chennai center court matches through Tennis TV streaming on iPhone/iPad (subscription fee $19.99 per month). I live in the U.S.
I’ve been watching Doha all tournament on BEIN TV channel in USA. But no listing for the final Saturday
Eurosport 2 at 3pm UK time
Does anyone know what station will air the live event? It is not listed on any channel also far. PLEASE!!!!!!!!
It depends where do you live. It will be on Eurosport in Spain.
Up til now the Doha Qatar tournament has been running on BEIN in the USA but it is not on that channel nor is it listed on tennis channel or any of the networks for the final tomorrow. They only list soccer and WTA in Australia.
That was very interesting–your listing of the past years of nadal and djokavic and who won. Thank you for posting that.
Every final is important when you are a champion. Never doubt that. A warrior will never give up; the desire is fierce and uncompromising. Do not pretend otherwise.
Since the expectation is for RAFA to lose, I suggest you (hater) start making your ‘Go Nole’ signs and congratulate him early on his win in Doha.
Leave now, I don’t want you to be late to Noles’ party.
Hater, Defeat WILL be a devastating blow, to RAFA FANS on this site NOT RAFA because, IT WOULD MEAN THAT YOU WOULD STILL BE HERE.
RAFA fan forever.
Congratulations Rafa! We are all behind our Champ! Vamos Rafa!
Hey Rafa, I’m not expecting you to win tomorrow since I know it is impossible considering Novak’s amazing form, but please be better than the previous time you played with him. I’d like to see a progress Rafa. Good luck!
Go out and enjoy the final Rafael, to morrow is not that important but the year ahead is. Stay confident and remember you are a true champion in every way.
You cannot be more wrong E. Victory is key. Defeat will mean a devastating blow.