Group B: Second round robin preview
Novak Djokovic
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Novak Djokovic (3) vs Robin Soderling (9)
Start: Wednesday 25 November, 14:15
Head to head: Djokovic 5/0 Soderling
Not the clash we expected in Group B’s second round robin tie, but Rafael Nadal’s conqueror Robin Soderling is a thoroughly deserving second round robin opponent for Novak Djokovic. The Serb himself is arguably the fortunate one, hanging on against tricky Russian Nikolay Davydenko to seal a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 victory, despite being second best for much of the opening two sets.
“I haven’t felt great on the court today,” Djokovic admitted after Monday’s match. “I’m definitely not the fittest guy on the Tour right now.”
Such words will play into the hands of a buoyant Soderling, fresh from the triumphant 6-4, 6-4 victory over World No. 2 Nadal. The Swede, knowing that a second win would be enough to guarantee his passage into the semi-finals, said:
“It’s a long way to go, but I have got off to a good start. I will take each match at a time and see if I can be here on Sunday.”
The tie on Wednesday will be the second time the two have squared up in November, having already faced off in the Paris Masters this month, a tournament Djokovic went on to win. Soderling gave the Serb a scare in their quarter-final encounter by winning the second set a thumping 6-1, but Djokovic heads into the 96th game of his season knowing that he has beaten the Swede in every one of their five career meetings to date.
Our prediction: A weary Novak to be battered to all corners by Soderling – the Swede to power through in three
Rafael Nadal (2) vs Nikolay Davydenko (7)
Start: Wednesday 25 November, 20:45
Head to head: Nadal 4/3 Davydenko
Rafael Nadal looked unimpressed when asked if his first round robin defeat to Robin Soderling was a missed opportunity for revenge. Dredging up the fourth round French Open defeat to the Swede at a time of personal and physical strain was not a topic of conversation in which Rafa wished to indulge.
“I don’t believe in revenge and every match is different,” he said.
“I didn’t play badly, I just didn’t stay calm in the important moments.”
Recapturing the calm and clinical edge at key points that has been Nadal’s most prized attribute in recent years will be crucial against Nikolay Davydenko, and despite both players losing their opening matches, the pair have been treated to the showpiece evening slot on Wednesday evening.
With Davydenko playing in spite of an undiagnosed respiratory problem, Nadal will look to clinch only his second victory over Davydenko on a hard court – his first coming in a three sets win in the round robin stage of the same competition in Shanghai in 2006.
Having won all three of their other hard court meetings, Davydenko might be confident of a fourth consecutive victory over Nadal on the surface, but could be hampered in that pursuit by the exertion of pushing Novak Djokovic to the wire on Monday.
Davydenko’s 6-3, 4-6, 5-7 defeat to the Serb involved a medical time out midway through the second set, but the Russian continued to fight to the end, with no visible signs of discomfort.
With great rival Roger Federer sealing his second win of the tournament with victory over Britain’s Andy Murray, Nadal’s faint hope of securing the year ending No.1 ranking has evaporated. But following the opening round loss to Soderling, the Spaniard is more concerned with returning to his form of old, starting with victory over Davydenko.
“Sport is like this,” he said. “Sometimes you have best moments, sometimes you have a little bit worse moments. This probably is one of these moments for me right now.”
Our prediction: Rafa back on song
Wednesday’s doubles:
12:30 – (6) Lukasz Kubot (POL)/Oliver Marach (AUT) vs. (7) Max Mirnyi (BLR)/Andy Ram (ISR)
19:00 – (2) Bob Bryan (USA)/Mike Bryan (USA) vs. (4) Lukas Dlouhy (CZE)/Leander Paes (IND)
Follow all Wednesday’s action, live from the O2, on our twitter page: twitter.com/tennisheadlive
