Novak Djokovic doesn't see himself as the favorite for Roland Garros; in fact, he put Rafael Nadal ahead of himself.
Looking at how both of these legendary players played this year, neither impressed with their level. Still, Djokovic is widely considered the far better player in many people's eyes, mostly because we haven't really seen Nadal at his peak in almost two years.
On the other hand, the Serbian won the ATP Finals by beating Jannik Sinner in the final. Even so, Djokovic, who just celebrated his 37th birthday, paid the ultimate respect to Nadal by picking him as the favorite for the upcoming 2024 Roland Garros when talking to the press at the Geneva Open.
He listed several players that he felt could win the event, but obviously, he put his Spanish rival ahead of himself due to his history and respect for Nadal.
"This year is more open. Casper Ruud is surely one of the five players who are candidates to win. You have Alexander Zverev, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas -- all the players who won a major tournament on this surface this year."
"But when you talk about Roland-Garros and Nadal is there, he is always the biggest favourite for me. After everything he has done on the courts at Roland-Garros court, it's normal, respectfully to put him as the biggest favorite."
If Nadal would be the favorite in Paris, it would be mostly because of his history and the fact that he was never an underdog at Roland Garros. His level hasn't been impressive lately, and his body is certainly a question mark, but the best possible version of Nadal surely could win the tournament.
The 2024 Roland Garros starts on May 26th, when the real answers will be revealed as to whether these two can challenge for the title.
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