Djokovic Survives Scare To Set Nadal Showdown

© Getty ImagesNovak Djokovic was given a stern test by Brazilian Thomaz Bellucci in the semi-finals.

World No. 2 Novak Djokovic’s winning streak looked under severe threat for a time against Thomaz Bellucci, but the Serbian held strong to prevail 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Saturday and give himself the chance to topple reigning champion Rafael Nadal in a blockbuster final at the Mutua Madrid Open.

The final of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament will see one remarkable winning streak come to an end. The 23-year-old Djokovic enters the fray having won his past 33 matches, dating back to the semi-finals of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in November, while World No. 1 Nadal has not been beaten on clay in 37 matches, since the 2009 Roland Garros fourth round (l. to Soderling).

It will be the third time the two have met this season, with Djokovic having beaten Nadal in the finals of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 hard-court tournaments in Indian Wells and Miami. However, Nadal leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head 16-9, including 9-0 on clay. One of the duo’s best matches came at the Caja Magica in the semi-finals two years ago, when Nadal saved three match points in the longest three-set match (4:03) on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era, prevailing in a third-set tie-break.

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“It’s great for the crowds, it’s great for the tournament, and for us in the end because every time it’s a big challenge and we both look forward to it,” declared Djokovic. “We are competing a lot in the last couple of months and we’ve had some really good matches, especially the ones in the United States recently. Of course the memories come back from Madrid 2009, when we played that very, very long match. It’s going to be great for the people to see us play.

“Of course I am motivated to win against anybody, especially against Rafa because it’s the ultimate challenge on clay courts,” added the Serb. “You want to step in and give your best and you want to try to win. He’s an incredible player, an incredible competitor and he’s been winning on clay courts so much over the past couple of years. I know that but I need to believe I need to step on to the court and try to win.”

Having come through a late-finishing quarter-final match in three sets against David Ferrer on Friday evening, Djokovic was not at his best in the early stages of his semi-final match. Giant-killer Bellucci, who had ousted World No. 4 Andy Murray and No. 7 Tomas Berdych to reach his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 semi-final, was quick to capitalise.

The Brazilian rained down heavy forehand blows on Djokovic to draw first blood in the match and lead 3-2 before going on to close out the one-set lead. Capitalising on his momentum, the 23 year old then recovered from a 0/40 deficit in the second game of the second set before breaking Djokovic to lead 3-1.

The 23-year-old Djokovic raised his level when it mattered, though, and dug deep to break back and level at 3-3 before reeling off four straight games from 4-4 to clinch the second set and open up a 2-0 lead in the decider. Bellucci had one chance to repair the damage in the fourth game, but he could not convert and Djokovic went on to claim victory in two hours and nine minutes.

“I always believed throughout the whole match that I could turn it around and I was right,” reflected Djokovic. “He was definitely the better player for a set and a half. He was more aggressive. I just felt quite slow on the court from the start of the match and it took me a while to really get into the rhythm. But when I did, when I made that crucial break, it was much better.”

The Belgrade native is bidding for his sixth tour-level trophy of the season after victories at the Australian Open (d. Murray), Dubai (d. Federer), Indian Wells, Miami and Belgrade (d. Lopez). His 31-0 start to the season is joint second (w/ Bjorn Borg) only to John McEnroe, who opened the 1984 season with a 42-0 mark.