Paris: World Number one Novak Djokovic on Sunday after reaching the fifth Roland Garros final of his career said that he is looking forward to meeting his "greatest rival" Rafael Nadal.
The World number one and two will face each other on Sunday in French Open final.
Djokovic is one of only two men to have defeated Nadal at Roland Garros in 15 years. And when asked about the same, Djokovic said, "Well, I've played him more than I played any other player in my professional career. I think our head-to-head is the biggest head-to-head ever in the history of the sport. I mean, the amount of matches we played is almost 60 matches. I'm not sure exactly the number. He's definitely my greatest rival."
World number one Djokovic, the 2016 champion at Roland Garros, defeated Greek fifth seed Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 4-6, 6-1 in a roller-coaster of a contest where he had held a match point in the third set.
Speaking about Tsitsipas, Djokovic, said, "He's a fighter. He's one of the best players in the world. Deservedly so. Obviously, he was also fighting for his first Grand Slam final. Of course, there was a lot at stake for him. He was motivated to try to turn the match around, which he did very well. But in the end, I think he ran out of gas. That's when I stepped it up, used my opportunities when they were presented in the fifth, and closed out the match in a great fashion."
When asked about him winning a potential 18th Grand Slam title of his career, Djokovic said, "Well, I mean, that would be an icing on the cake, as you guys like to say. I hopefully will be able to play my best tennis because that's what's going to be needed in order to have a shot at the trophy. But look, I am in a position to be close to the trophy. I'm in the last match of the tournament, playing against the biggest rival, the biggest obstacle and challenge that you can have. This is what it comes down to. I've been there. I've done it. I understand what needs to be done and how I need to prepare myself. I'm looking forward to it."
