What Rafael Nadal said Novak Djokovic would find ‘impossible’ to do but he was proven wrong just four years later

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Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal have played each other more than any other ATP rivalry in history.

Nadal retired at the Davis Cup Finals last year, losing his final match to Botic van de Zandschulp.

His farewell in Malaga received mixed reviews, with Djokovic criticizing Nadal’s retirement ceremony.

Djokovic beat Nadal at the Paris Olympics in their last official match, before going onto win an elusive gold medal.

However, they have shared the court again since, with Djokovic paying tribute to Nadal at the Six Kings Slam exhibition in Riyadh.

Of their 60 official meetings, nine of them have been Grand Slam finals, with Nadal saying something about Djokovic in 2011 that has since been proved wrong.

What Rafael Nadal said Novak Djokovic would find ‘impossible’ to do

The year of 2011 saw Djokovic have a major breakthrough, as he won his first 41 matches of the season before being beaten by Roger Federer in the semi-finals of Roland Garros.

This was one of only six losses that Djokovic suffered all year, as he would win his second, third and fourth Grand Slam titles in 2011.

The final of those Grand Slam wins came at the US Open, where Djokovic would beat the aforementioned Nadal in the final.

Djokovic saved two match points against Federer in his semi-final, before beating Nadal in a four set final.

With the Grand Slam season done for the year at that point, Nadal paid tribute to Djokovic’s achievements and suggested that what his rival had achieved would be unrepeatable.

“Congratulations Novak, congratulations for everything,” Nadal said in the post US Open final ceremony. “What you did this year is probably impossible to repeat so well done.”

In an interview after that US Open final, these comments from Nadal were relayed to Djokovic, who was subsequently asked what he thought about them.

Djokovic responded with three words, signifying that his bid for history was far from over, “Nothing is impossible.”

Novak Djokovic’s achievements in 2011 vs 2015

Djokovic was right, as just four years later he went onto match if not better the season that he had in 2011.

This included Djokovic becoming only the second player in history, at the time, to beat a vulnerable Nadal at Roland Garros, before he was prevented from getting his hands on the title by Stan Wawrinka.

Throughout both of his dominant 2011 and 2015 seasons, Djokovic did not lose one match to Nadal.

Once again, Djokovic won three of the four Grand Slam titles in 2015 and this time around finished if off in style with victory at the year-end ATP Finals.

This is one of four seasons that Djokovic has won three Grand Slams, and been one major title away from joining Rod Laver and Don Budge as the only men in history to complete the Calendar Slam.

Although one chapter has come to an end, Djokovic now has a rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz as the Nadal legacy lives on.

However, last season was Djokovic’s first without a Grand Slam title in seven years as he still seeks a record breaking 25th major.