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Fans of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic were left confused after the ATP's website showed 61 completed matches in the Nadal vs Djokovic rivalry, with the Spaniard leading 31-30. The two tennis greats played each other on tour for the 59th time just three weeks ago at the French Open.
After taking a closer look, it came to light that their 2022 French Open quarterfinal was counted thrice, in a hilarious computing error in displaying their head-to-head record. Nadal, who won that match, was thus credited with three wins, giving him a 31-30 edge as opposed to their actual record of 30-29 in favor of Djokovic.
Tennis fans on social media who spotted the error on the ATP website had some humorous reactions to the same.
"ATP are just counting this year’s Wimbledon and US Open finals in advance, it’s not that deep," one fan wrote on Twitter.
The great rivalry has produced some of the greatest matches of all time, including many in Grand Slams. The Spaniard leads 11-7 in their Grand Slam head-to-head, while the Serb leads 16-13 in matches played at ATP Masters 1000 events.
"Makes sense. If an injured opponent beats the fittest opponent of all time, it should count thrice," joked another fan.
The 14-time French Open champion leads the all-time Major titles race with 22 Grand Slams to his name, to Djokovic's 20. Meanwhile, Djokovic has the most Masters 1000 titles (38).
In their latest match at the 2022 French Open quarterfinals, the duo wrote another chapter in their epic rivalry - regarded as one of the greatest of all-time. Playing on the claycourts at Roland Garros, the now 14-time champion Nadal started strongly in the match, winning the opening set 6-2. Djokovic overcame a 0-3 deficit in the 2nd set to tie the match at 2-6, 6-4.
The Spaniard found his mojo again, clinching the third set 6-2 before saving a set point to win the 4th set and thus the match with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6(4) scoreline.
How the Wimbledon 2022 draws panned out for Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic
The Top-2 seeds are expected to face off in yet another Grand Slam final, this time at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. However, both will have to see off some stern challenges en route to the summit clash, as per the men's singles draw announced on Friday.
Defending champion Djokovic faces Kwon Soon-woo in the opening round before a potential second-round clash against Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia. 25th seed Miomir Kecmanovic and 15th seed Reilly Opelka loom large in the next two rounds. Rising star Carlos Alcaraz is a potential quarterfinal opponent, and if Djokovic manages to reach the semifinals, he could face either third seed Casper Ruud or seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz.
Meanwhile, Nadal opens his campaign against Francisco Cerundolo ahead of a tough second round against American Sam Querrey. Italian Lorenzo Sonego and 2017 finalist Marin Cilic are potential opponents in the third and fourth rounds, respectively. The Spaniard is drawn to face sixth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime in the quarterfinals before a semifinal match-up against Stefanos Tsitsipas or the in-form Matteo Berrettini.
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