'I Don’t Miss Him In the Draw': Djokovic Jokes About Nadal’s Absence At Roland Garros

Saturday, 27 May 2023 at 17:50

Updated at Tuesday, 17 June 2025 at 11:49

byZachary Wimer

Novak Djokovic joked about not missing Rafael Nadal in the draw ahead of this year's Roland Garros.

Djokovic and Nadal have played some epic matches over the course of their careers, with a few happening at Roland Garros. Djokovic's win over Nadal from two years ago was utterly impressive and a perfect revenge for the defeat a year earlier.

Mats Wilander recently claimed that Djokovic is disappointed by Nadal's absence from Roland Garros, however, the Serbian player himself joked that it's not true.

Striking a somewhat serious tone in the next sentence, Djokovic did admit that seeing Nadal in the draw makes things harder for him, which isn't something he looks forward to.

"Well, honestly, I don't miss him being in the draw, you know, (smiling). You know, I don't like seeing him in the draw of Roland Garros, to be honest, you know. I have had not so much success against him in our records head-to-head in Roland Garros."

"I have managed to beat him twice, but, you know, I had to leave my heart and my guts out on the court to achieve that. So I know how hard it is to play him anywhere, really, around the world, but especially here."

Nadal withdrew from this year's Roland Garros about a week before the event, leaving Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz as the favorites for the event.

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Both will be facing added pressure to perform well, but don't expect either to not embrace that. Even so, not having Nadal isn't ideal for the event, as Djokovic tackled the issue from the perspective of a tennis fan.

"But, you know, of course, as a tennis fan and someone that is also part of the tennis ecosystem, you always want to win, to see the best tennis players in the world, the most famous tennis players in the world playing."

"So he's definitely one of the guys that not only has made history in terms of his records in this tournament overall, but just he won the hearts of many tennis fans around the world, and deservedly so, with his charisma and character and everything that he left in his legacy."